Justin Cox trial delayed after witness doesn’t show

A key witness in Justin Cox’s assault trial was missing from Regina Provincial Court on Monday — the woman he’s accused of assaulting.

The Crown prosecutor could not explain the woman’s absence, but said that she had been served a subpoena in February and that the Crown had been in contact with support workers in the lead-up to the court date.

The woman was also nine months pregnant, the Crown added, and set to give birth at any moment.

Cox was charged with assaulting her on Oct. 5, but police were unable to locate him for nearly three weeks. The former Saskatchewan Roughriders defensive back was arrested Oct. 23 and has been in jail since.

In December, he was sentenced to nine months in jail for a vicious attack on an ex-girlfriend that left her with bruises and a broken nose. He was given an additional three months for breaching the terms of his release by repeatedly contacting her and threatening her not to testify against him.

Cox is appealing the nine-month sentence.

Cox’s lawyer argued against delaying Monday’s trial, but the judge granted an adjournment and rescheduled the trial to June 10.