City of Greater Sudbury asking Supreme Court to rule on Elgin St. pedestrian death

The City of Greater Sudbury wants the Supreme Court to decide whether or not it is responsible for the death of a woman on Elgin Street six years ago.

The street was being repaved in September 2015, when Cecile Paquette, 58, was run over by a grader operated by Interpaving, a city contractor.  

A court ruled in 2018 that the city was not responsible because it was not legally seen as the "constructor" on the job.

Interpaving pleaded guilty to the charges under the Occupational Health and Safety Act and paid a $195,000 fine. 

The provincial Ministry of Labour appealed to the Ontario Superior Court, which upheld the ruling in June 2019.

The Court of Appeal agreed to hear the case in October, but in April 2021, ruled that past courts had erred, setting the stage for a new hearing.

That is now delayed, as the city seeks a leave to appeal with the Supreme Court, which will decide whether or not to hear the case based on whether it is deemed to be of national importance.

CBC asked the City of Greater Sudbury how much this court battle has cost taxpayers over the last five years and was told that this type of information needs to be requested using freedom of information laws.

However, that wasn't the case last fall when the city released that at least $600,000 tax dollars had been spent fighting the legal challenges against the proposed Kingsway Entertainment District.