BATTLEFORD - A man facing charges in the death of Richard 'Dick' Buck saw a stay of proceedings at the Court of King's Bench in Battleford on Jan. 17.
Clarence Ryan Buck, 30, was previously facing a charge of manslaughter in the case.
Crown prosecutor Danie Cilliers confirmed to SaskToday that there was a stay of proceedings. Clarence Buck is not facing any other charges.
The case had previously gone through a preliminary hearing at North Battleford Provincial Court.
"The purpose of having a preliminary hearing is for the Crown to review its case," Cilliers said. "The purpose of the preliminary hearing would be to examine the strengths and the weaknesses, and based on the prosecutorial standard we have as a Crown, the Prosecution Services of Saskatchewan, which is if we can prove something and we have a reasonable likelihood of conviction, that's the test that we obviously apply. And, in reviewing our case, we decided that we are going to request a stay of proceedings."
Cilliers noted that the stay of proceedings means the Crown can still bring the charge back in the future, as long as it is within the next 12 months.
According to police, on July 6, 2023 at approximately 1 a.m., Battlefords RCMP received a report of an assault at a home in Meota. Officers immediately responded. Investigation determined an altercation occurred between two men. One of them, Richard Buck, 56, was taken to hospital with injuries described as serious. He later died in hospital.
- With files from Lisa Joy
