Preliminary inquiry in boy’s death toreopen for one day

A preliminary inquiry for a Calgary couple charged with manslaughter in the death of a five-year-old boy will be reopened for one day in September.

Justice Richard Neufeld said Wednesday the hearing for Allan and Carolina Perdomo will be briefly reopened to allow the defence to question the lead investigator — however, the trial remains scheduled for November. The couple was committed to stand trial last year in the death of Eneas Emilio Perdomo, who died in July 2015.

Neufeld’s comments came after defence lawyers sought clarification on whether the trial will remain scheduled given the preliminary inquiry has been reopened.

“That indictment was quashed. I am questioning whether the Court of Queen’s Bench has jurisdiction for that sort of thing. This is a very unique situation,” Darren Mahoney, the lawyer for Allan Perdomo, said in court. “It appears when an indictment is quashed and the matter is sent back to provincial court to continue a preliminary inquiry, the jurisdiction of the matter would now be that court.”

In June 2017, following the preliminary inquiry, provincial court judge Brian Stevenson ruled there was enough evidence to have Allan and Carolina Perdomo stand trial. Neufeld told the Crown and defence that he still expects the trial to begin as scheduled on Nov. 13. “I think that my decision was blindingly clear on what is expected in this case in terms of next steps, and I was very specific as to what’s to be done,” he said. “We are in the post-Jordan era here where everyone is expected to row in the same direction as far as getting matters dealt with in an expeditious way.”