No trial for Saskatoon woman accused in Ottawa woman's nightclub death
CTV
A Saskatoon woman accused of manslaughter in the death of another woman at a Saskatoon nightclub last fall has had her charge stayed.
A Saskatoon woman accused of manslaughter in the death of another woman at a Saskatoon nightclub last fall has had her charge stayed.
Paige Theriault-Fisher was charged in the death of 23-year-old Hodan Hashi at Lit Nightclub in early November.
Sharon Fox, the defence lawyer for Theriault-Fisher, said a stay of proceedings was filed by the Crown and endorsed by the court on Tuesday morning.
Charges can be stayed by the Crown if they decide it’s better to halt the trial. The prosecutor can always resume legal proceedings within a year. The judge has no say in a stay of proceedings by the Crown.
A spokesperson from the Justice Ministry offered an emailed statement explaining the Crown came to the conclusion the death was accidental. They say the video evidence corroborated witness accounts of a "mutual fight" between the two women.
“During the fight, the two women went to the ground and, tragically, Hodan Hashi was cut by a broken glass lying on the floor. Based on the evidence, that cut was the fatal injury that caused Ms. Hashi’s death,” the statement said.
“After careful consideration, Public Prosecutions has concluded that the fatal injury resulted from an accident; there is no reasonable likelihood of conviction for the charge of manslaughter or any other criminal charge.”