Two prosecutors appointed as judges in Kitchener

KITCHENER — Two prosecutors, Karey Katzsch and Scott Latimer, have been appointed as Ontario Court of Justice judges in Kitchener.

The appointments were announced on Monday.

Katzsch was called to the bar in 2002 and most recently served as the deputy Crown attorney for Waterloo Region.

She is a member of the Sexual Assault Response Team of Waterloo Region, a frequent lecturer at the Ontario Crown Attorneys Association summer school, and a volunteer lecturer at local high schools and universities on topics related to criminal law.

“Karey has been an extreme-

ly effective prosecutor,” Waterloo Region Crown attorney Mark Poland said in an email on Monday.

“She is a smart and effective lawyer who has prosecuted a large number of big cases here in the region. Our loss is definitely the gain of the Ontario Court of Justice. She will be a fabulous judge.”

Poland added, “Coupled with the appointment of Justice Scott Latimer, I would say this is two back-to-back home runs.”

Some of the high-profile cases Katzsch has prosecuted include:

Dan Magda, a Kitchener pedophile who was named a dangerous offender earlier this year for serial sex abuse.

David Thomas, who was sentenced in 2015 to life in prison with no chance of parole for 16 years. He was convicted of murdering his girlfriend Denise Bourdeau, whose decomposed body was found on a flood plain of the Grand River in Kitchener.

Trevor La Pierre, sentenced in 2010 to life in prison with no chance of parole for 17 years for savagely murdering Hunter Brown, a Kitchener grandfather who was delivering Christmas cards to his neighbours.

Latimer, meanwhile, was called to the bar in 2003 and has served as Crown counsel and was the assistant Crown attorney with the Peel Region Crown attorney’s office for 10 years.

He volunteers with the Oakville Soccer Club, Angels Girls Softball Club and Oakville Little League.

The appointments of Katzsch and Latimer are effective Aug. 31.