Trial wraps up in fatal highway crash near Red Deer

Once the light turned green, a third vehicle, a blue Dodge Nitro is said to have approached the intersection in the westbound lanes of Highway 11A and pulled out into the left-hand lane to pass the first two vehicles.

Joan Rogers of Sylvan Lake, who was stopped at the red light in the second vehicle, told court the Escape and Nitro were then travelling at equal speeds side-by-side with the left-hand passing lane coming to an end and neither vehicle adjusting their speed for the Nitro to merge back over into the right-hand lane.

Court heard expert testimony on Monday from an RCMP Forensic Collision Reconstructionist that the Dodge Nitro then continued driving in the eastbound lanes of Highway 11A at roughly 75 km/hr for five seconds or roughly 105 metres after the previous westbound passing lane came to an end.

It was at that point an eastbound Mitsubishi Lancer is said to have crested a hill in the road and struck the Dodge Nitro, fatally injuring a passenger in the Lancer with the occupants of all three vehicles involved taken to Red Deer Regional Hospital for treatment of their injuries.

During closing arguments on Tuesday, Crown prosecutor Ann Siford reiterated testimony from Blackfalds RCMP Cpl. Brandon Smith, who said Crotty smelled of alcohol while at the crash scene and admitted to having two or three drinks.

Siford also pointed out Crotty would have passed nine street signs and a big white arrow on the road to indicate the left-hand passing lane was ending, but added Crotty made no effort to merge back into the right-hand lane or apply the brake at all, despite the trailing vehicle of Rogers leaving two to three car lengths of room for Crotty to pull in.

These were actions, Siford argued, not of someone who is sober, but of someone impaired by alcohol.

“Our submission is we have proved beyond a reasonable doubt that Crotty was operating a motor vehicle while impaired,” she told Justice Monica R. Bast, who is presiding over the judge-alone case.

However, defence lawyer Maurice Collard told court through his closing arguments there was’ little circumstantial evidence to support an impaired driving conviction’.

He said Crotty’s admission to having two or three drinks and smelling of alcohol indicates ‘consumption’ and not ‘impairment,’ adding Crotty displayed no visible signs of impairment that night — such as a flush face, stumbling or lack of coherency among others.

“There literally could not be less evidence of operating a vehicle while impaired,” he told court.

Collard suggested Crotty’s actions can best be described as a “momentary lapse in attention for 3.5 seconds” after failing to merge back over into the right-hand lane of westbound Highway 11A once the passing lane ended.

Collard concluded that Crotty’s inattentiveness behind the wheel is a careless driving offence and not criminal in nature.

The case returns to court October 1 to set a date for a decision.

by Sheldon Spackman

Trial wraps up in fatal highway crash near Red Deer

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