Crown won’t appeal acquittal in Tina Fontaine murder case

WINNIPEG — The Crown will not appeal the acquittal of a man who was accused of killing 15-year-old Tina Fontaine and dumping her body in a Winnipeg river.

Prosecutors said in a statement Tuesday that only errors in law can be appealed when someone is found not guilty.

“After a critical review … by the Manitoba Prosecution Service’s appeal unit and the Crown attorneys who prosecuted the case, it has been determined there are no grounds to base a successful appeal.”

A jury found Raymond Cormier not guilty last month of second-degree murder in the Indigenous girl’s death.

Her body, wrapped in a duvet cover and weighed down by rocks, was pulled from the Red River eight days after she disappeared in 2014.

Grand Chief Sheila North, who represents First Nations communities in northern Manitoba, said the lack of an appeal leaves people hurting.

“This is just another blow to the reality that the justice system has failed Tina Fontaine and her family,” North said.

“It just leaves another gaping hole in the hearts of … Indigenous people.”