Wettlaufer Defence To Review 'Substantial Disclosure'

Wednesday, 15 February 2017 10:11

The former nurse accused of 8 counts of murder will be back in court on March 3rd after defence reviews 'substantial disclosure'

WOODSTOCK - It was another brief court appearance for Elizabeth Wettlaufer, but there could be some hope for the families on the horizon.

Wettlaufer appeared for only moments via a video conference. For the families of the seniors affected, like Arpad Horvath Jr. who travelled from London, it can almost feel fruitless to make the journey only to see these brief glimpses and little progress made.

"Well yes and no - yes it was worth it, because it's for my father and I promised I would be here every court appearance for him, and I'm here for him. But no, because it was so brief there wasn't much to it and she's going to be back in March on the television so we'll see what happens."

Horvath's father was exhumed as part of the investigation.

The defence has now received substantial disclosure and will need time to comb through it. Horvath says it provides a glimmer of hope, but without something more concrete to stand on, it's difficult to see where this is going.

"It has given me a little bit of hope, but Christmas is coming too so I mean - when is it coming? I would like to know that too. And how much is coming? 'Cause I'd really like to skip to the bones of the matter and see if we can make a little bit of progress or something."

Wettlaufer will return to court via video link on March 3rd.

The former Woodstock nurse is facing eight counts of first-degree murder. Seven of those deaths happened in Woodstock at the local Caressant Care, the other occurred in London. Last month, the 49 year old was also slapped with more charges - including four counts of attempted murder and two counts of aggravated assault. The alleged aggravated assaults and two of the attempted murder charges also come from incidents at Caressant Care. The other attempted murder charges stem from Telfer Place and a private residence in Oxford County.

Four of the six victims have since passed, but 77 year old Sandra Towler continues to live at Telfer Place in Paris.