Nursing home owner acquitted of elder abuse

Footage of an elderly man claiming abuse by a nursing home manager before he passed away was not enough evidence to convict the worker, Canada's top court ruled Thursday. In a 7-0 judgment, the Supreme Court acquitted Ramnarine Khelawon on charges of aggravated assault and uttering threats against people in his care at Toronto's Bloor West Village retirement home. Since all the residents accusing Khelawon had passed away before the trial could even begin, the only evidence against him hinged on one elderly man's video statement. But because the retirement home resident was no longer alive, the high court ruled there were doubts about the reliability of the statement and no way Khelawon's lawyer could do a cross-examination. In light of this, the court concluded there was no way Khelawon could have a fair trial.

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