The fate of this year's Shores of Erie International Wine Festival in Amherstburg is up in the air as a case against the corporation heads to trial.
On September 6, 2014 18-year-old Emily Bernauer died in a car crash after working at the festival. A postmortem report showed alcohol in her system.
Defence lawyer Patrick Ducharme says the crown is trying to hold the festival responsible for allegedly serving alcohol to someone under 19.
"It's our position that the Crown cannot prove the actus reus, that is the act of serving a minor intentionally with alcohol," Ducharme says.
Charges against individual board members were dropped last August.
A trial date will be set next Monday, which should last about two days.
"Both the Crown and the defence will call witnesses, but the Crown and the defence are working on an agreed statement of facts that we can both live with because there are certain things that are not contentious," Ducharme says.
Festival organizers tell BlackburnNews.com they will make a decision on whether it will run this year once a trial date has been set. Last year's event was cancelled.
