Former Windsor Spitfire Ben Johnson is back in jail.
His application for an appeal of his sexual assault conviction was dismissed in the Ontario Court of Appeal in Toronto on Tuesday.
In September 2016, Johnson was found guilty of sexual assaulting a 16-year-old girl in the washroom at the former Mynt Nightclub in Windsor in March 2013.
Johnson, now 23, was sentenced in October 2016 to three years in prison.
Prominent Toronto lawyer James Lockyer represented Johnson in the appeal process.
Among his arguments, Lockyer argued Justice Kirk Munroe made a mistake when he chose to dismiss all of Johnson's evidence at trial.
In his verdict, Judge Munroe ruled the victim was so drunk that she did not have the ability to consent to sex. Johnson said they never had sexual intercourse. He testified the girl gave him oral sex, and it was consensual.
Johnson has been out on bail since November and has been spotted in the Windsor and Owen Sound areas.
But a court spokesperson confirmed to CTV News that Johnson surrendered to authorities, as per his bail conditions, before Tuesday’s hearing.
Lockyer could not be reached for comment.
Johnson, a native of Calumet, Michigan, was drafted by the New Jersey Devils in 2012. He played 49 games with the organization's AHL club, but he never played in the NHL. The Devils terminated Johnson's contract after he was found guilty.
