Charges have been dropped against a Winnipeg woman whose infant son was found dead in a dumpster in Winnipeg’s North End earlier this year. A Manitoba Justice spokesman confirmed the Crown had stayed proceedings on all charges against Jeanene Rosa Moar earlier this month. Moar was charged in June with involuntary manslaughter and concealing the body of a child after her little girl was found dead in a dumpster between Boyd Avenue and Redwood Avenue. Police told media at the time that investigators believed the infant was still alive when they placed it in the trash can. The provincial spokesman said the development in the case came after the Crown spoke with the medical examiner who performed the autopsy. The spokesman said the Crown told the court on October 5 that, “Following this discussion, we have come to the conclusion that we would not be able to determine the cause of death – whether by unlawful act, otherwise unavoidable circumstances, or natural causes. As a result, we are no longer satisfied that there is a reasonable prospect of Ms Moar being convicted of any offense arising out of these unfortunate circumstances.’ Adam Hodge, a criminal defense lawyer representing Moar, said the stay of proceedings was not a shock. “From our perspective, Jeanene has always been innocent of these charges,” he said. He said Moar was released from custody about a week before the charges were dropped – spending about four months in custody. “I think she’s happy that it’s all behind her and she can get on with her life.” “WE CAN’T RUSH TO JUDGE HERE” SAYS JUSTICE PROFESSOR Doug King, a professor of justice at Calgary’s Mount Royal University, said he wasn’t entirely surprised to hear the charges against Moar were being stayed. “This happens a lot more often than most people realize – it’s about 35 percent of all cases that end up staying,” he said. “It’s very important to remember that a person is innocent until proven guilty. And that case is until the judge says they’re guilty. So we can’t rush to judgment here related to a case like this.” He pointed out that a stay of proceedings does not automatically drop the charges. Typically, it freezes court proceedings and within a year, if no further evidence is provided, the charges will be dropped at the end of the stay. Hodge said that while the Crown could reinstate the charges, he doesn’t think that will happen. “It’s incredibly rare,” he said. “In this case, I think the Crown, after talking to the pathologist, realized there was no reasonable possibility of a conviction. I don’t expect that to change in a year.” King said it’s a tragic situation. something that will be felt in the community with questions he said likely won’t be answered. “I think we have to understand that a lot of times, solutions to this kind of social tragedy never come from the criminal justice system,” he said. “That’s how I feel about the people of Winnipeg because you don’t heal that way with that kind of uncertainty.” Hodge said what the community can take away from this is that Moar is an innocent person. “This is not someone the public should be concerned about,” he said. “What Winnipeg and Winnipeggers can take away from this is that the evidence was not there to substantiate the allegations made in this case.” -with files from CTV’s Josh Crabb
