A self-proclaimed Cree medicine man will stand trial in 2025, accused of 12 counts of sexual assault.
The alleged offenses against Cecil Wolfe stem from encounters with women between 2013 and 2021 in the Muskeg Lake and Saskatoon areas.
Last year he pleaded guilty to the offenses, which would have seen him sentenced to nine-and-a-half years in prison.
However, Wolfe changed lawyers and in September successfully argued his guilty plea should be removed as he was not properly advised by his former attorney.
Saskatchewan Justice Sanjeed Anand granted Wolfe’s request saying Wolfe’s former lawyer did not adequately inform him of his legal rights and the consequences he was facing if he pleaded guilty.
The concerns outlined by Anand included an over-estimation of the sentence Wolfe could receive by his original lawyer, Wolfe being unaware he would have to register as a sex offender and face other ongoing legal consequences, Wolfe being unaware of his right to trial by jury or judge, and that Wolfe did not understand that he could plead guilty to some of the charges rather than all of them.
His trial by jury will commence in February 2025.
(With files from Joel Willick.)