2 Bathurst officers pick jury trial in Michel Vienneau manslaughter case

Two members of the Bathurst Police Force are opting for a jury trial in connection with the shooting death of Michel Vienneau in the northern city in January 2015.

Const. Patrick Bulger, 38, of Beresford and Const. Mathieu Boudreau 26, of Dunlop are each charged with:

• Manslaughter with a weapon.
• Two counts of assault with a weapon.
• Two counts of unlawfully pointing a firearm.

The officers will be back in court on March 22.

The next hearing will be used to determine if a joint preliminary hearing will be used and then to set any dates.

No pleas have been entered.

Boudreau was represented by lawyer T.J. Burke, who requested an adjournment of three or four weeks in early January.

Bulgerdidnot yet have a lawyer at the last hearing, on Jan. 4.He is now represented by Brian Munro.

The police officers have been suspended with pay from the force.

The charges were laid in November following an investigation by the Nova Scotia RCMP into the shooting death of Michel Vienneau, 51,of Tracadie in the parking lot of the Via Rail station in Bathurst.

Court documents filed in connection with a civil lawsuit against the City of Bathurst by Vienneau'scommon-law wife, Annick Basque, state police were acting on a Crime Stoppers tip that Vienneau was returning from Montreal with drugs when police attempted to arrest him on Jan. 12, 2015.

In its statement of defence, the City of Bathurstsaid the police officers fired in self-defence after Vienneau's car accelerated without warning and pinned one of the officers against a snowbank.

Nova Scotia RCMPsaid they found no evidence in their investigation that Vienneau was involved in illegal activity.

On Mobile? Follow the live blog here