Saskatoon jury finds former principal guilty on three assault counts

A Saskatoon jury has found Duff Arthur Friesen guilty on three of five counts of assault with a weapon for striking students with a wooden paddle at Christian Centre Academy.

Friesen was the school’s principal in the early 2000s. The school was also formerly known as Legacy Christian Academy, which has since been renamed Valour Academy. Its affiliated church, Mile Two Church, has been renamed Encounter Church.

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During Friesen’s two-week trial at Saskatoon’s Court of King’s Bench, five former students testified they had been struck by Friesen with a wooden paddle as a form of what court heard described as “scriptural discipline,” a practice tied to a passage in the Bible.

During closing arguments on Thursday, defence lawyer Daniel Mol told the jury that Friesen should be acquitted because not enough evidence was reliable or credible.

He said there was a “frailty of memory” in the recollection of dates and details during the testimonies of former students.

However, Sheryl Fillo said the allegations are historical and that the witnesses may not be able to recall exact dates because they were children at the time.

Fillo said the Crown is not required to prove the precise date of an alleged offence.

Following a separate trial in December 2025, Friesen was given a six-month conditional sentence for assaulting a former student with a wooden paddle.

Friesen was found guilty on one of four charges of assault with a weapon for an incident during his tenure at the school between 2003 and 2004.