Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 3/1/2015 (2086 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A Winnipeg man has been accused of failing to help his 90-year-old mother as she slowly died while lying on the floor after falling days earlier in their Garden City home.

Ron Siwicki, 62, has been charged with criminal negligence causing death and failing to provide the necessities of life in what justice officials say is an unusual case of neglect.

None of the allegations has been proven in court, and Siwicki is presumed innocent.

He was arrested Dec. 17 and detained in custody without bail, court documents reviewed by the Free Press Friday show.

The accused is expected to seek his return to the community at a hearing Monday.

Betty Siwicki stumbled inside the residence in late November and was unable to get up on her own.

'She was always pleasant and nice. (The son) was always very nice with her'

Her son, who lived in the home with her, allegedly failed to seek medical attention.

Instead, officials believe he covered her with a blanket to keep her warm while giving her Boost nutritional drinks and water.

The frail woman remained on the floor for about five days until she died.

"She did not want help or for him to call for assistance. He complied with her wishes," the man's lawyer, Mike Cook, told the Free Press.

He and co-counsel Amado Claros said they plan to vigorously defend their client against the charges.

Cook said they are waiting for a medical report.

Police consulted with senior Crown officials before laying the charges in mid-December.

"It seems she may have died from immobility, but we have no medical information to date," he said.

Cook also expressed surprise police and the Crown did not consent to releasing the accused from custody.

Ron Siwicki, who has worked for years as a professional musician at local clubs and events, had no criminal record before his mother's death.

Cook said he was told the Crown will oppose bail on the grounds the public will lose confidence in the administration of justice if he is released.

"Winnipeg has been his home all his life. He is a decent, hard-working man with much support in the community," said Cook.

"He should be at home grieving with his family and not detained in the (Winnipeg) Remand Centre.

"It''s a very sad case. He is grieving the loss of his mother with strangers."

Other grounds for opposing bail typically deal with offenders who have lengthy records and are at a high risk to reoffend or not show up in court due to the serious nature of the charges.

Contacted Friday night, a neighbour said the Siwicki family has lived in the house for more than 50 years.

Betty Siwicki's husband died many years ago, Ruth Melnyk said. "She was always pleasant and nice.

"(The son) was always very nice with her. He took her places, and they went to the casino together."

Criminal negligence causing death is one of the more unique charges in the Criminal Code.

It is also one of the most difficult to prove because there is much room for interpretation in the wording of the legislation.

To prove such an offence, one must show the accused is guilty of "a wanton or reckless disregard for the lives or safety of other persons" either through commission or omission of an act.

The charge is most commonly seen in cases of traffic fatalities in which driver distraction and inattention leads to a tragic result. There was also a recent landmark case in Winnipeg where a drug dealer was convicted after a woman to whom he supplied morphine died of an overdose.

The maximum sentence is life in prison.

Failing to provide the necessities of life is also a rare charge. It's most often seen in cases of parents who don't provide adequate food or shelter to their children. This is believed to be one of the first cases of its kind in Manitoba in which an adult is facing the charge related to a senior parent.

www.mikeoncrime.com