THUNDER BAY - The son of a local lawyer has been found not guilty on several charges related to an incident that took place in August 2020.
Justice A. McKay released his decision on Tuesday following a two-day trial held earlier this month against David Poirier on charges of assault, uttering threats to cause death, and breach of a release order for not keeping the peace.
Poirier was found not guilty on all charges, with Justice McKay saying the Crown failed to prove beyond a reasonable doubt Poirier committed the offences brought before the court.
The incident took place on Aug. 28, 2020 involving Poirier, the complainant, as well as Poirier’s father, Ronald Poirier.
Ronald Poirier was charged with forcible confinement and assault from the same incident, but the charges were withdrawn in April 2021 in favour of a 12-month peace bond.
When the charges were filed, Ronald Poirier was a lawyer practicing in private in Thunder Bay. He is also retained as a federal Crown agent through the Public Prosecution Service of Canada (PPSC).
In order to protect the identity of the complainant, details of the incident cannot be revealed.
Justice McKay did note that the incident was a highly volatile and emotionally charged event.
“That is not an optimal scenario in terms of people’s ability to accurately perceive or recall what happened that day,” he said in his decision. “Add to that the passage of two years of time it is not surprising the memory fades and the evidence of witnesses contain discrepancies.”
Ultimately, Justice McKay ruled the Crown did not prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Poirier was guilty of the charges before the court.
