‘No consent means no touching; joking or not’
A Regina man has been found guilty of sexual assault after a court ruled he humiliated a young gas station attendant under the guise of a joke.
Michael Bernhardt was convicted on July 6 in connection with an Oct. 15, 2025 incident at a Regina gas station, according to CTV News. The victim's identity is protected by a publication ban.
The incident
Court documents cited by the publication state Bernhardt arrived for fuel around 10 a.m. and was particular about how his truck was filled. The attendant briefly turned off the nozzle to help another customer, then returned to finish fuelling.
Bernhardt criticized him for leaving the nozzle unattended, CTV News reported, then said things "would be OK" if the attendant told him a joke. The attendant complied with a joke about Jesus and hockey.
Bernhardt then asked to show a joke in return. He had the attendant raise both arms behind his head in what he called a "Full Nelson," then moved behind him, grabbed his waist and thrust his hips into his buttocks twice, according to the court decision cited by the publication. Bernhardt called it "my way of showing dominance" before driving off. The attendant testified he consented only to being shown a joke, and video corroborated his account.
The attendant told a co-worker about the incident that day, CTV News reported. Both were working when Bernhardt returned the next afternoon.
While the co-worker fuelled his vehicle, Bernhardt asked if she knew any jokes, telling her, "I would 'do' it to you, but you are a girl," before miming the routine without touching her, according to court documents.
The co-worker testified Bernhardt then pointed at the attendant and said, "He knows the 'Three Nelsons' joke and that's why he's so grumpy." She told the court the attendant "was not being himself," and advised him to report the matter to their supervisor.
Ruling and reaction
The attendant reported the incident after Bernhardt left the station, CTV News reported. He and his supervisor reviewed video footage and identified Bernhardt through customer records before contacting police.
At trial in June, Bernhardt's defence argued the attendant consented by following his instructions, according to CTV News. Judge Steven Schiefner disagreed, ruling the attendant could not have anticipated the final act because the routine relied on misdirection, and that whether contact is sexual is judged objectively, from a reasonable observer's perspective.
Schiefner cited New Brunswick Provincial Judge Brigitte Sivret's reasoning that touching someone in a way that violates their sexual integrity without consent is sexual assault "even though it was done in a context of a joke," CTV News reported.
He concluded: "No consent means no touching; joking or not." Sentencing has not yet taken place, according to the report.
Earlier this year, an alleged sexual assault on a cannabis store worker in Winnipeg prompted renewed scrutiny of retail safety measures in Manitoba
