Ex-coach says he didn’t act sexually

SARNIA, Ont. — A former highranking gymnastics coach accused of sexual assault told his trial Thursday that when he apologized to his accuser for “crossing the line,” he wasn’t referring to any sexual transgressions.

Dave Brubaker said he wrote a letter expressing his regret to a former trainee because he had gone beyond the bounds of a typical coach-athlete relationship by driving her to practice and taking her on family outings, among other things — but he insisted none of his behaviour was sexual.

Brubaker, once the director of the women’s national gymnastics team, has pleaded not guilty to one count of sexual assault and one count of invitation to sexual touching at his judge-alone trial in Sarnia, Ont. The charges relate to alleged incidents between 2000 and 2007.

“Boundary transgressions in sport are very clear,” Brubaker said as he testified in his own defence, explaining that he’s taken courses in the matter.

“You do not drive a kid to school, you don’t contact them outside of the gym, you don’t contact them on social media.”

The complainant, who is now in her 30s, has testified that Brubaker would pick her up from school and take her to his house, where he would occasionally spoon her in bed and tickle her belly before driving her to practice.

Brubaker denied the allegations, saying there wouldn’t have been an opportunity to lie in bed with the complainant because his wife was usually at home when he brought the then-teen to their house. “It never happened,” he said. He said that when he wrote the letter containing his apology — a note written when he was being questioned by police — he was referring not to sexual misdeeds but to the family-like role he took on in the complainant’s life.

Brubaker said he felt compelled to write the letter by the police officer who was interviewing him at the time.

“[The officer] told me what to say. He told me what to write,” he said.