Teen girls charged in fatal ‘swarming’ are headed to trial

Eight girls who police say murdered homeless man Kenneth Lee in 2022 are headed to a jury trial.

Ontario Court Justice David Rose committed each of them to trial on Friday after 10 days of hearing evidence and argument at a preliminary hearing. But not all of the girls will stand trial on the second-degree murder charge laid by Toronto police.

Six of the girls, Rose ruled, will face trial on second-degree murder and two were committed to stand trial on the lesser charge of manslaughter.

The evidence Rose heard in a fifth floor courtroom of the new Armoury Street courthouse is covered by a publication ban that protects accused persons’ fair trial rights. Evidence heard at a preliminary hearing may differ from what may be presented to a jury where the standard for evidence is higher.

The identity of the girls is also protected under the Youth Criminal Justice Act that sees rehabilitation as a central goal for young persons, even those facing the most serious charges under the Criminal Code.

The girls were arrested in December 2022, days before Christmas, after they allegedly swarmed and stabbed Lee in the early morning hours downtown. Lee was homeless at the time. The alleged attack took place just outside the Strathcona Hotel, operating as a temporary shelter space during an ongoing homelessness crisis compounded by the COVID-19 pandemic.

At the time, three of the girls were age 13, three were 14 and two were 16.

All but one of the girls is on bail as they await trial.

Trial dates in the Superior Court of Justice have not yet been scheduled.