The rear entrance of the Quinte Courthouse, on July.14/16. (Photo: David Foot / QuinteNews)
The trial of a personal support worker, accused of inappropriately touching an elderly woman at a Belleville nursing home, will continue in three weeks.
At the Quinte Consolidated Courthouse on Thursday, Justice Michael March told court he found some major inconsistencies in the out-of-court statements of the victim, identified as J.S. and said the fact the woman in her 90s couldn’t be cross-examined was a big issue.
J.S. has accused Bruce Letford of inappropriately touching her while giving her a bath at Belleville’s Belmont Longterm Care Home in 2015, but when questioned by police, she had trouble recalling some specifics of the incidents and also gave off-track answers at times.
Crown Attorney Jodi Whyte has asked for some time to visit with J.S. and assess her current mental capacity, to see if she’d be able to testify and be cross-examined.
If she is, court will reconvene at the long term care facility in three weeks and if not, the charges will likely be withdrawn, with no prospect of conviction.
