Quebec judge refuses cop’s request to dismiss charge in death of 5-year-old boy

A judge has refused a Quebec provincial police officer’s request to have a charge against him dropped in the death of a five-year-old boy.

Patrick Ouellet is accused of dangerous driving causing the death of Nicholas Thorne-Belance.

Ouellet had filed a motion seeking the charge be dropped because of alleged interference in the case by Quebec Justice Minister Stephanie Vallee.

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READ MORE: Quebec officer formally charged with dangerous driving in death of boy

The Crown initially decided to not lay charges but the single charge was filed against Ouellet in 2015 after Vallee ordered an independent review of the case amid intense pressure.

Quebec court Judge Denys Noel ruled today there was no interference on Vallee’s part and Ouellet will have his trial in June.

Thorne-Belance died in hospital a few days after the crash in February 2014 involving his father’s car and an unmarked police cruiser that was speeding during a surveillance mission in St-Hubert, a borough of Longueuil.