Is there enough evidence for William Knapp to face a manslaughter trial?
That’s the question that was being debated Thursday at a pretrial at the Woodstock courthouse.
Knapp is accused of killing Carolyn de Wit, who died while at a restaurant on Main Street in Norwich in January 2016.
She had died of a drug overdose. Police believe fentanyl was one of the drugs in question.
De Wit worked at the restaurant where she died. Melissa Liddle, who works across the street, was one of her regular customers.
“She was always very bubbly. She always had a smile on her face,” she said Thursday.
“I was shocked, for something like that to happen in a small town.”
In addition to manslaughter, Knapp is charged with a drug trafficking offence.
While he awaits trial, he is free on bail. He does have to abide by a number of conditions, including not owning firearms and not contacting de Wit’s relatives.
With reporting by Allison Tanner
