A former Chatham-Kent police officer will finally have her case heard in a Chatham court next month after several delays because of health issues.
On August 2, 2022, Cristelle Vanden Enden will be directed to either get her criminal charges resolved or go to trial. A medical update is also on the agenda for that day.
Vanden Enden has been battling a drug addiction for years and serious health issues over the past year, but her lawyer told the court she is out of the hospital now and doing better. She was in the hospital recently and went to drug rehabilitation last year.
Vanden Enden retired from the Chatham-Kent Police Service at the end of April. Vanden Enden was on a medical leave of absence from work and was ordered by a Chatham judge a year ago to go into rehab following several months at the Windsor jail.
Vanden Enden has had several run-ins with the law over the past few years and still faces a slew of charges, including dangerous operation of a motor vehicle, criminal negligence causing bodily harm, possession of stolen property, breaching her previous release conditions, and fraud.
Her drug possession charges were dropped after she completed a program called Direct Accountability, a diversion program which reduces court time and criminal records for adults.
This case is under a publication ban that prevents more information from being made public. The purpose of the ban is to preserve the rights of the defendant to a fair trial, and the presumption of innocence.
