Quebec judge refuses police officer's request to dismiss charge in 2014 death of 5-year-old boy
Patrick Ouellet accused of dangerous driving causing death of Nicholas Thorne-Belance
A judge has refused a Quebec provincial police officer's request to have a charge against him dropped in the death of a five-year-old boy.
Patrick Ouellet is accused of dangerous driving causing the death of Nicholas Thorne-Belance in February 2014.
Ouellet had filed a motion seeking the charge be dropped because of alleged interference in the case by Quebec Justice Minister Stephanie Vallée.
The Crown initially decided to not lay charges but the single charge was filed against Ouellet in 2015 after Vallée ordered an independent review of the case amid intense pressure.
Quebec court Judge Denys Noël ruled today there was no interference on Vallée's part, and Ouellet will have his trial in June.
Thorne-Belance died in hospital a few days after a crash on Feb. 13, 2014 involving his father's car and an unmarked police cruiser that was speeding during a surveillance mission in Saint-Hubert, a borough of Longueuil.