Woman, 19, facing attempted murder charge in 6-year-old’s stabbing in Halifax
A 19-year-old woman is facing attempted murder and weapons charges after a child was stabbed and left with life-threatening injuries in downtown Halifax Sunday afternoon.
Halifax Regional Police spokesperson Const. Martin Cromwell has confirmed the victim is a six-year-old boy, who remains at the IWK hospital.
Cromwell said the weapon used in the attack was a knife, and that the child was with his parents at the time.
“This is a very, very tragic incident,” Cromwell said, adding there was no evidence to suggest the suspect knew the child, nor was there evidence that it was a hate crime.
Officers responded to the 1900-block of Barrington Street — in the area of a bus shelter — just before 1:30 p.m. Sunday. Police said the child was found suffering from “multiple” stab wounds and was taken to hospital by ambulance.
The suspect was found at the scene and initially arrested on charges of aggravated assault.
Elliott Chorny, 19, appeared in court Monday afternoon to face charges of attempted murder and possession of a weapon dangerous to public peace. She was remanded to custody until her next court date on March 13.
Court documents show that Chorny is alleged to have assaulted a woman on Jan. 27 in Halifax. Both that charge, which was sworn in last Tuesday, and this latest charge list Chorny as having “no fixed address” on court documents.
“The accused was known to police,” Cromwell said. “To what degree, I would not be able to detail.”
So, to speculate wildly, there are a number of possibilities for this woman's actions? First, is she really a woman? If she is transgender then mental illness is a good possibility. Drugs are another possibility. Drugs can also lead to mental illness. It is unlikely that she is a radicalized Muslim since she is apparently homeless, but, nevertheless, a possibility.
There are many questions as to why this woman was on the loose. I hope there is an inquiry into who and what failed her leading to this tragedy.
Calls for more security
Patricio Garcia, the president of Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU) Local 508, confirmed the incident happened near a Halifax Transit bus shelter and that one of their bus operators witnessed the attack.
“The driver, once it set in, was quite shaken by the entire turn of events as anybody would witnessing something like that,” said Garcia, who added the union usually follows up in situations like this to offer counselling services.
“It’s certainly very, very, very scary that something like this happened in broad daylight in one of our terminals. Certainly something that we would love to see more security brought in to those terminals.”
Garcia said it’s especially worrisome considering there was another incident the day prior in Spryfield where bus passengers were attacked.
In that case, police said an altercation broke out between passengers and “people driving in two separate vehicles,” which resulted in a physical fight where a hammer was used as a weapon.
Garcia said certain terminals — including Lacewood and the Bridge terminals — have dedicated supervisors on site throughout the day and night. He attributed that visible presence for “a huge reduction in the issues” at those sites.
“A lot of our terminals are starting to get busier and … there’s a lot more issues at them. And certainly having some kind of a presence there all the time is something that we would love to see,” he said.
Mayor Andy Fillmore called the incident an “unthinkable tragedy.”
“I want residents to know that our first priority is always the safety of HRM residents. And to that end, I really want to give credit to the Halifax Regional Police who managed the scene and the first responders who who helped to get the the youth to the IWK,” he said.
“I would always encourage people to be to be vigilant of their surroundings. But look, this was entirely unexpected. It was a surprise attack. I think we just want to encourage people to send good thoughts to the family and to be careful.”
Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston expressed “outrage and sadness” after learning about the stabbing.
“My thoughts are with the victim and their family. The person who did this is clearly a threat to the public and should be kept locked behind bars,” Houston wrote on social media.
Claudia Chender, the leader of the NDP and the Official Opposition, said she is sending love and prayers to the child and hoping for a full recovery from “this senseless act.”
“As we await details, and justice, my heart is with this child’s family, friends and community,” Chender posted on social media.
Anyone with information on this incident or has video from the area at the time is asked to call police at 902-490-5020.
— with a file from The Canadian Press
Barendrecht man subjected 18 children to physical sexual abuse: Prosecutor
The case involves 31 victims, girls aged 9 to 12. The abuse allegedly happened in Van B.’s home in Barendrecht and the campsite in Hoeven (Noord-Brabant) that he frequented. In November, the authorities already said that there were around 30 victims. The man also had child pornography. These are different images than the ones he allegedly produced himself.
The suspect did not attend the second preliminary hearing on Monday. The families of the involved children followed the hearing via a video link from another courtroom.
Van B. is scheduled to be admitted to the Pieter Bann Center at the end of May for a psychiatric and psychological examination. He will fully cooperate, his lawyer said.
The case will continue on May 20 with another preliminary hearing. It is not yet known when the case will come to trial. “There is still a lot of work to be done,” the presiding judge said. 
Reporting by ANP
No comments:
Post a Comment