Iqaluit (May 01/06) - The wheels of justice move slowly, but the father of a woman who was nearly beaten to death in Pangnirtung last year says he hasn't lost his patience.

The accused, Tommy Nuvaqiq, is expected to be back in front of the Nunavut Court of Justice on May 2 to set a date for a preliminary inquiry.

Nuvaqiq was charged with attempted murder, sexual assault and break and enter in connection with a June 20, 2005 incident in which a 31-year-old Nova Scotia woman was attacked in a boarded up home in Pangnirtung. She worked for Northern Property and was staying in the house at the time of the attack.

"I realize that the wheels of justice turn slowly, I'm not discouraged at all," said the woman's father last week.

Nuvaqiq has made several appearances to set a date for his preliminary inquiry since he was arrested on July 16 in Pangnirtung.

He has chosen to be tried by jury, and the trial will take place in Pangnirtung.

"I'm trying to get my head around (the attack), and I know I'll never make sense of it," said the father. He praised both the prosecutor and the RCMP for keeping him informed about the progress of the case.

"They are very helpful. I get a call every time there is an appearance. They run the different scenarios by me," said the father.

His daughter's recovery has been slow, he said.

"It's coming. It is day to day but it is coming. Her speech is coming along really well. She is having speech therapy four times a week."

The woman is in New Waterford, Nova Scotia, with her family and fiance. She needed pieces of her skull removed after her brain swelled up following the attack.

Losing the mobility in her right hand was a major blow to his daughter, according to her father. "It slows her down with the computer and she finds that frustrating. She was always the type of girl to do whatever she wants when ever she wants."

The family still hasn't decided if they will travel to Pangnirtung for a trial.

"She is and isn't looking forward to it (a return to Pangnirtung). We don't know how long it will be, so it is really too early for that," said the father.