A teenager who pleaded guilty to manslaughter in connection with the alleged assault of a homeless man in Toronto is seeking a reduced sentence after she was repeatedly forced to strip naked during searches while in custody.

The teenager was one of eight girls – all between the ages of 13 and 16 – arrested in connection with the death of Kenneth Lee, who police say was attacked by a group of girls in December 2022.

An agreed statement of facts surrounding the strip searches was read out in court on Wednesday during the teenager’s sentencing hearing, which is scheduled to continue next month.

It states that the then 13-year-old girl was forced to strip naked four times in the weeks following her arrest at a detention center in Kingston, Ontario.

The document says she was forced to strip naked twice earlier this year at a facility in London, Ontario, while in custody on an unrelated assault charge, a charge the court heard she has since pleaded guilty to.

The statement of facts states that the searches were routine procedures after the girl arrived at a facility or returned from a family visit or court hearing.

According to the agreed statement of facts, the Kingston facility had a written policy from 2006 until January of this year that required youths to strip naked during searches. The London facility’s written policy did not contain such a requirement, but two staff members “misunderstood” it, the document says.

A guideline from the Ministry for Children and Youth on searches in custody states that while routine body searches are permissible, the young person “must not be completely undressed for a longer period of time”.

“It was humiliating,” teenager said in court

In her testimony on Wednesday, the girl said that for a long time she did not understand that what had happened to her was wrong.

The teenager said she was still ashamed of the searches.

“I still feel” dirty, she said, adding that she was talking to a counselor about it. “It was humiliating, to be honest … I felt really bad,” she told the court.

The girl was moved to tears as she told the court that she had struggled with body image issues since childhood and felt uncomfortable when people looked at her.

4 teenage girls have pleaded guilty in the case

At least two other girls who have pleaded guilty in the case are expected to testify about the strip searches.

A total of four girls have pleaded guilty in the case – three to manslaughter and one to assault and battery.

The remaining four girls are due to stand trial in the Supreme Court next year, three of them for premeditated murder and one for manslaughter.

None of the girls can be identified under the Juvenile Justice Act.