Foerster men move closer to trial

Photo: Melissa Ligertwood

A memorial for Taylor Van Diest was set up at the trail built in her honour.

The father of the man accused of killing an Armstrong teenager still doesn’t know when he will stand trial, but the court process is beginning to move along.

Stephen Foerster was absent Monday morning at his Vernon court appearance, but both the Crown counsel and his defence lawyer were in attendance.

They asked the judge to set a date for a pre-trial application, as issues still need to be addressed before a trial date can be set.

Crown counsel Chris Balison confirmed a pre-trial application was in the works and set to happen in Kelowna, but he could not pass along any other details. Forester’s lawyer Joe Deuling would not comment on the case or his client.

A pre-trial application is usually requested if counsel wants something out of the ordinary, be it an adjournment or the exclusion of an unconstitutionally obtained piece of evidence. At this point it is unclear why a pre-trial application is being called.

The judge agreed to set the pre-trial application for the week of May 5, 2014 for two days in a Kelowna courtroom.

The 59-year-old Foerster, who is from Cherryville, BC, is charged with accessory after the fact to murder and obstructing justice in the 2011 death of 18-year-old Taylor Van Diest.

His son Matthew has been charged with first-degree murder in the death of Van Diest. He was arrested at a motel in Collingwood, Ont., on a Canada-wide warrant.

Van Diest’s body was discovered on the railway tracks in Armstrong on Halloween night, 2011. 

The trial for Matthew Foerster has been set for March 3, 2014 with judge and jury.