COURT CASE ADJOURNED,

The second court date for the Alberta semi driver charged in connection with the Humboldt Broncos bus crash that killed 16 and injured 13 others consisted of a quick telephone call before it was adjourned to October.

Jaskirat Singh Sidhu, 29, was not present in Melfort provincial court on Tuesday — his lawyer, Satnam Aujla, filed a designation to appear on his behalf. Sidhu is living in Calgary after he was released on $1,000 bail last month.

He was charged with 16 counts of dangerous driving causing death and 13 counts of dangerous driving causing bodily harm after his semi collided with a bus carrying the Humboldt Broncos hockey team on April 6 north of Tisdale.

The case is scheduled to be back in court on Oct. 2 for defence election, which involves the accused choosing to have his case heard at either the provincial court level or the Queen’s Bench level. He has not yet entered any pleas.

“If an election is to a higher court, like the Court of Queen’s Bench judge alone or judge and jury, then it’s set for a preliminary inquiry. Only if he elects trial by provincial court is he asked to enter a plea,” Saskatoon Crown prosecutor Robin Ritter said outside court.

An accused is not obligated to appear in court until his preliminary inquiry, Ritter noted.

The Crown consented to Sidhu’s release on numerous conditions, avoiding the need for a bail hearing. He had to forfeit his passport and is not allowed to drive.

No family members of the crash victims appeared to be in court on Tuesday. Last month, Scott Thomas, the father of deceased player Evan Thomas, attended court and indicated it was important for him to see Sidhu in person.

More than $15 million was raised through a Gofundme campaign for the families affected by the crash, with donations coming from across the world.

Last week, a Saskatoon Court of Queen’s Bench judge approved interim payments of $50,000 for each of the 13 survivors and the families of the 16 people who died in the crash.