Villanueva coroner's inquest likely to resume

The coroner's inquest into the death of Fredy Villanueva is expected to resume this fall after a deal was reached on paying legal fees for some of the witnesses in the case.

Villanueva, 18, was killed in an altercation with police last August, sparking widespread rioting in Montreal North.

The coroner's inquest, which initially started in May, was quickly called off when two witnesses in the case — who were also shot — refused to participate because the government had agreed to pay for the Villanueva family's lawyers but not theirs.

The witnesses’ lawyers complained they weren't given access to the piles of documents related to the case and didn't have time to prepare.

The Villanueva family also had concerns about inquest; saying nothing short of a full public inquiry — which is broader than a coroner's inquest — would satisfy the family.

Without the witnesses or the Villanueva family's full co-operation, Quebec Court Judge Robert Sansfaçon called off the much-maligned inquest soon after it began, saying the process was unfair without the participation of the two witnesses.

The witnesses’ lawyers now say they think there’s a good chance the inquest will proceed, because they’ve come to some resolution with the coroner’s office over getting their legal fees covered.

"We need the time to be prepared as well .… The other parties have been ready months ago. We will need that time as well," said René St-Léger, lawyer of one of the witnesses of the shooting.

St-Léger said it's important to broaden the scope of the inquiry to look into social issues that led to the shooting, such as racial profiling.

St-Léger said the inquiry would likely resume sometime this fall.