New Conviction for James Miller in Sarnia Case
11:34 am Monday, October 5, 2026
Penticton resident James Miller has been found guilty of additional sexual offences against a minor, marking the second case related to his past as a youth sports coach in Ontario.
Miller was initially facing three charges of sexual interference involving someone under 16, two counts of invitation to sexual touching under 16, and one count of sexual assault. However, after the evidence was presented, these were modified by the Crown.
The trial coordinator from the Sarnia court confirmed via email that Justice Jason Howie found Miller guilty on Oct. 2 of two counts of invitation to sexual touching, one count of sexual interference with a minor, and one count of sexual assault.
This trial occurred earlier this year and was followed by another trial with two different complainants. In that second trial, Justice Raikes found Miller guilty on five out of seven charges on Sept. 18. Sentencing submissions are expected in November for this case.
: Penticton councillor convicted: ‘Used coaching role to befriend boys’
All charges against Miller relate to his time as a volunteer basketball coach in Sarnia during the 90s while he also worked as a sports journalist for the .
The trial presided over by Justice Howie involved R. L., who testified about his long friendship with Miller-from joining the Sarnia Colts basketball team as a boy to trips taken together and massages given by Miller, including one incident of sexual assault.
Alongside R. L., the Crown called an employee from a nearby sports complex who reported witnessing some incidents discussed by R. L. after seeing them on security footage. The police looked into it at that time but did not pursue further action.
Miller denied all allegations against him and maintained his innocence throughout both trials.
During cross-examination when the Crown questioned him about their friendship using an analogy about slow boiling frogs, Miller simply responded “No” ten times consecutively within just over a minute.
Sentencing submissions before Justice Howie are currently set for Dec. 14.
At the time of his arrest in 2024, Miller was serving on Penticton city council and had been placed on paid leave until his first conviction on Sept. 18, 2026.
He was also working as editor for both the and Penticton Herald; however, once trials began, they listed him as being on leave and later removed his name from their contact pages entirely.
Source link
