High-profile former MP on trial for resisting, obstructing police

A high profile and popular former politician in northwest New Brunswick went on trial Wednesday on charges of resisting and obstructing police during an episode stemming from a family dispute over a dementia patient's money.

Bernard Valcourt, a former MP and cabinet minister in the governments of prime ministers Brian Mulroney, Kim Campbell and Stephen Harper, listened intently in an Edmundston court as staff from a local nursing home testified about the alleged incident.

"I said, 'Bernard, what are you doing? I've never seen you act like that,'" Jean-Anne Pelletier, the care manager at Villa des Jardins, told the court. 

Pelletier testified that she had known Valcourt for a long time, and he was "a happy man" but he also had a temper.

According to prosecutors, Valcourt, a lawyer, violated Section 129 of the Criminal Code on Oct. 4, 2022, when he "voluntarily obstructed" two Edmundston police officers and "resisted" them as they were trying to do their work. 

In his testimony, Valcourt disputed the prosecution's account, telling the court a resident of the nursing home wanted to hire him as a lawyer, and she had the right to consult him without interference.

"I tried to explain [to the police] and they didn't want to hear anything about it," he testified. 

The Crown is seeking a summary conviction that would carry no jail time.

The nursing home's manager, Diane Bouchard, told the trial that Valcourt arrived at the home on Oct. 4, 2022, to see Colette Cloutier, an elderly resident diagnosed with dementia.

Bouchard said Cloutier's son Charles had power-of-attorney over her care and her legal affairs, so staff were concerned when Valcourt went to her room to meet with her alone.

Bouchard confronted Valcourt in Cloutier's room and asked him why he was there.

"He said, 'It's none of your business.' I said, 'Yes, it's my business. Madame Cloutier has dementia, and she can't have discussions alone with a lawyer.'"

Valcourt's lawyer, Luc Roy, objected that prosecutors had introduced no power-of-attorney documents as evidence and said that would be key to the defence. 

"Mr. Valcourt had the right to speak to the lady.… That's the nub of the problem," he said.