Testy exchanges between a woman accused of being a fraudulent Vancouver nurse and lawyers marked the already-convicted person’s appearance in Vancouver Provincial Court July 5.
Brigitte Cleroux remains in prison in Ontario on a seven-year sentence after pleading guilty to seven charges, including assault, assault with a weapon, fraud and impersonation.
She was due in Vancouver Provincial Court June 26 for arraignment. That didn’t happen but pleas might be done soon.
On July 5, she was in front of Judge Ellen Gordon after having fired lawyer Chris Johnson. Cleroux participated via video from prison.
Crown prosecutor Patti Tomasson told the judge Cleroux had discharged Johnson, and that another lawyer had been spoken with about conducting the defence.
“Ms. Cleroux does not seem to be in agreement with that,” Gordon said.
It was suggested Cleroux might have Jim Heller as her lawyer.
“No, I’m not,” Cleroux said, adding she had let Johnson go but that he had since agreed to stay on.
Tomasson said she’d spoken to Johnson before court and he was off the case. She said legal aid was arranging for new counsel and information was going to Heller.
“He is not going to represent me,” Cleroux said. “You can’t assign me new counsel. I don’t agree with that.”
After some back and forth, it was decided the judge and Crown would contact Johnson to see if he would take the case.
But Cleroux wasn’t done.
“I’ll just represent myself,” she said.
“I don’t think so,” Gordon countered.
Tomasson said the charges are serious and Cleroux representing herself would raise concerns.
The case
The charges and conviction came after parallel Ottawa Police Service and Vancouver Police Department (VPD) investigations, which alleged the Gatineau, Que. woman posed as a nurse to treat patients in Ontario. She's accused of doing the same in B.C.
In Vancouver, Cleroux faces charges of assault, assault with a weapon, fraud over $5,000, using forged documents and personation with intent to gain advantage.
There is also civil court action running in tandem with B.C proceedings and completed Ontario ones.
The Vancouver case is currently 575 days old.
Cleroux remains in Grand Valley Institution in Kitchener, Ont. It remains to be seen whether she would be in person in Vancouver for the sentencing. That would be up to the sentencing judge.
Multiple charges in two provinces
The initial charges were approved in November after the VPD launched a months-long investigation. The investigation was spurred by reports of a BC Women’s Hospital employee allegedly fraudulently identifying herself as a nurse between June 2020 and June 2021.
VPD’s Financial Crime Unit found a woman had allegedly fraudulently used the name of a real nurse while providing medical care to patients at the hospital.
Ottawa police began their investigation after being told a woman had used aliases and assumed the identities of registered nurses that she fraudulently obtained. Cleroux allegedly carried out nursing duties at a medical and dental clinic in the nation's capital.
“Some of those duties included the administration of medications, including injections, to patients,” Ottawa police said.
