Decades-old murder case of woman found in Ont. river delayed over concerns accused not fit for trial
CTV
After weeks of delays, the Ontario Superior Court of Justice has yet to determine whether the 82-year-old man accused of killing an American woman and dumping her body in a river in Ontario nearly 50 years ago is fit to stand trial.
After weeks of delays, the Ontario Superior Court of Justice has yet to determine whether the man accused of killing an American woman and dumping her body in a river in Ontario nearly 50 years ago is fit to stand trial.
Last year, Rodney Nichols was extradited from the U.S. to Canada after being charged with the 1975 murder of 48-year-old Jewell Parchman Langford.
Lawyers for Nichols, now in his 80s, have said he suffers from dementia and requires an assessment of whether he is fit to be tried for Langford's murder.
Court documents reviewed by CTV News Toronto show that assessment has been twice extended due to a lack of available forensic neuropsychologists at the Whitby, Ont. mental health facility where Nichols is currently detained.
The filings show that Nichols was first ordered to undergo an assessment at the beginning of the year and, on Jan. 18, was transferred to Ontario Shores Centre for Mental Health Sciences in Whitby.
The report from the initial assessment, dated Feb. 9, was inconclusive, according to the documents. Nichols was then ordered to undergo further assessment for a period of either 30 or 60 days. However, under the Criminal Code, the total time of an original assessment order and extension must not exceed 60 days.
The case came back to the courts on Feb. 13, when Holowka granted another extension to March 17. But before it could return, a second report, received by the court on Feb. 29, cited a lack of available forensic neuropsychologists for the delays and requested yet another extension – to mid-April.
