Trial for former private Saskatoon Christian school administrator rescheduled, again

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/saskatoon/ken-schultz-christian-centre-academy-trial-cancelled-hospital-9.7185051

The trial for one of the former administrators charged with assaulting students at a private Christian school in Saskatoon has been adjourned, again.

Ken Schultz is charged with assault with a weapon for allegedly striking students with a wooden paddle at Christian Centre Academy in the early 2000s. He is also charged with sexual assault.

His judge-alone trial was scheduled to run next week in Saskatoon Court of King’s Bench, but on Friday, Schultz’s lawyer Daniel Mol requested an adjournment because Schultz, 77, is in hospital.

Crown prosecutor Sheryl Fillo opposed the request, noting witnesses were subpoenaed and she was prepared to proceed.

Justice Krista Zerr granted the adjournment.

It is the second time Schultz’s trial has been postponed at the last minute. A year ago, in May 2025, Schultz was scheduled to have a jury trial. In the weeks leading up to that trial, Schultz re-elected to have his trial by judge alone and indicated he would be resolving the case with pleas instead of a trial.

But on the day the pleas were expected, his lawyer at the time said she had to ask for an adjournment because “discussions broke down” with her client over the pleas.

Schultz got a different lawyer and set new trial dates for this month.

On Friday, those dates were cancelled and the trial was rescheduled for March 2027.

Schultz faces a separate set of charges — also for allegedly assaulting students with a wooden paddle and sexual assault — currently scheduled for December 2026.

Two other former administrators at the private school were also criminally charged for allegedly using wooden paddles to discipline students.

Former principal Duff Friesen has had one trial, where a jury acquitted him of three counts of assault and convicted him on one count. He received a six-month community-based sentence.

He has a second jury trial scheduled for September.

Former director John Olubobokun was convicted of nine counts of assault after one trial, and then pleaded guilty to five other charges before his second trial began. He received an 18-month community based sentence following the trial and then a five-month community sentence after the guilty pleas.

Lawyers for both Friesen and Olubobokun have indicated they will be appealing.

Former students at the school filed a proposed class-action lawsuit in 2022 alleging abuse. But last year, a Court of King’s Bench judge dismissed the case, citing abuse of process after the plaintiffs didn’t immediately disclose settlement agreements with three of the defendants. That is being appealed.

Two former staff at the school are also facing professional disciplinary proceedings, but the cases have not yet been heard and they are challenging the jurisdiction of the regulatory body.