Judge delays ruling for police officers in shooting of New Brunswick businessman
BATHURST, N.B. — Two police officers charged in the fatal shooting of a New Brunswick businessman they mistakenly thought was involved in the drug trade won’t find out until next year whether their case will go to trial.
Constables Mathieu Boudreau and Patrick Bulger of the Bathurst Police Force were charged with manslaughter after Michel Vienneau, 51, was shot near the city’s train station in January of 2015.
The pair were conducting a drug investigation. But the RCMP later said its review found Vienneau, who owned an electronics store in Tracadie-Sheila, N.B., was not involved in criminal activity.
Following an earlier preliminary hearing, a judge was supposed to rule Thursday on whether the two would be committed to stand trial on the charges, which also include assault with a weapon and unlawfully pointing a firearm.