A Grand Forks man accused of assaulting a Fruitvale man during a KIJHL playoff game at the Beaver Valley Arena last year denied the allegation as the defence presented its case at trial on Wednesday.
Glenn Holbrook, who was 57 at the time, is charged with aggravated assault. He testified in Rossland Provincial Court that he brought an airhorn to each Border Bruins game to use when the team scored or won.
He said no one complained to him about it until the end of the game on March 19, 2025, when Kevin Doherty, 47 at the time, approached him from behind. He said Doherty took a firm grasp of his right shoulder and said “I’m going to stuff that [expletive] horn up your [double expletive].”
Holbrook said he stepped into the stairwell, turned around, and put his hands in front of himself, fearful of being assaulted. He said Doherty’s hand remained on him as he turned. “I thought I was about to get punched or hit,” Holbrook said. “I put my hands up so that I wouldn’t.”
Holbrook he isn’t sure if he slipped or was pushed, but he lost his balance and grabbed on to Doherty “because he was right in front of me.”
While previous witnesses suggested Holbrook threw Doherty down the stairs, Holbrook said that was “Not what happened. Not at all.”
Holbrook said he actually fell first, backwards down the stairs, and Doherty came tumbling after him. He said they fell down five or six stairs, and “hitting the glass at the bottom was the only thing that kept me from landing flat on my back.”
Holbrook said he wasn’t sure when they let go of each other. He testified that afterward, Doherty yelled “I was only joking,” something that Holbrook said was repeated by a woman who added: “I know who you are. The police are going to get you.”
Holbrook said he wanted to get away from Doherty as soon as possible. He denied jumping on Doherty’s legs or trying to punch him and another man who came to his aid, as a previous witness testified. Holbrook also said he didn’t notice any obvious injuries to Doherty’s legs or knees. He denied intending to injure Doherty.
Holbrook said while his back, head, and jaw hurt, he didn’t seek medical help. He said he and his wife initially stayed at the arena because they expected to be asked what happened. When security personnel arrived, one of them suggested the couple leave, which they did, Holbrook said.
He said when driving home that night, he came to believe Doherty had assaulted him. He said a few days later, someone told him a call had gone out on social media looking for information about the incident. Holbrook testified that he left a phone message with the RCMP, but never heard back. Holbrook’s lawyer subsequently contacted police on his behalf.
Holbrook said no one from security had approached him about his use of the airhorn, and his only other conversation about it was with a man who was sitting behind him with a drum and offered him a set of earplugs.
Asked if he wished he had done anything differently that night, Holbrook replied: “Yes. I wish I hadn’t gone to the game.”
More witness accounts
The defence called five other people who were in the arena that night. Marty Williams of Grand Forks testified that he thought Doherty was drunk, although Doherty previously told the court he didn’t drink any alcohol that night. Williams also said he heard Doherty make a comment to a friend of Williams’ that was similar to the one Holbrook claims Doherty made to him.
Williams said Doherty “tried to put Glenn in a headlock. He walked down the stairs, put his arm around Glenn’s head and Glenn stood up.” Williams said he didn’t see Holbrook throw Doherty down the stairs and thought instead that Doherty lost his balance.
In previous testimony, Doherty said he was in “excruciating pain” following the incident and that he later learned both of his knees were dislocated, which required surgery. He said his right elbow was also injured and his head was bruised. Doherty said he spent the next four or five days in hospital and when discharged, he remained in bed for over a month, as he couldn’t walk or stand. Under cross-examination, he denied exaggerating his injuries.
Court also heard testimony on Wednesday from Rick and Sabrina Rougeau, whose son was playing for the Border Bruins on the night of the incident; from Alex Campbell, another Grand Forks man who witnessed the aftermath; and from Matthew Roshinsky, whose daughters were shaken up by the incident.
Roshinsky testified that he separated Holbrook and Doherty and that Doherty complained that his leg hurt. Roshinsky, who has first aid training, said it “looked like something was not right” with Doherty’s leg. He said he stayed with Doherty until a first aid attendant arrived.
The case is scheduled to resume Oct. 28 for closing arguments, but the lawyers involved are hoping to speed that up and suggested they might provide written rather than oral submissions. A date is expected to be fixed next week.
