Jail term for fatal crash

A man whose wife was killed after a driver prevented her from merging into his lane says he forgives the 68-year-old motorist who caused his wife’s “catastrophic exit from this world.”

“It is better to be forgiving than vengeful,” Adam Hyde said Thursday in a Superior Court of Justice in Welland at the sentencing hearing of Kenneth Mitchell, of Niagara Falls.

“I am only one of a plethora of victims in this case,” he said.

Judge Linda Walters sentenced Mitchell to 18 months behind bars and banned him from driving for 10 years on a charge of dangerous driving causing death. He pleaded not guilty to the offence and was convicted following a three-week trial held earlier this year.

“This is a tragic case for all involved,” the judge said, adding she doubts the defendant set out that day with the intention of harming anyone.

She also commended Hyde for his ability to forgive, saying he “demonstrated charity and grace” towards the defendant.

The judge ruled Mitchell deliberately prevented Rie Motomitsu from merging into his lane as the 33-year-old Niagara Falls woman drove down Highway 420 towards the Victoria Avenue exit on Aug. 18, 2013.

A witness at trial testified he observed Mitchell accelerate to match the speed of Motomitsu’s vehicle as it approached the exit.

The woman’s car came into contact with Mitchell’s vehicle, causing her to lose control. The car mounted a curb and collided with a light standard. Motomitsu died at the scene.

An accident investigator with the Niagara Regional Police and a forensic engineer testified both vehicles were traveling at at least 75 kilometres an hour at the time of the crash. The posted speed limit is 50 kilometres an hour.

Assistant Crown attorney Andrew Brown asked the judge to consider imposing a jail sentence of between five and seven years, saying the collision was “completely preventable.”

“This was not an accident. This was a deliberate series of decisions made by Mr. Mitchell.”

He said the defendant is an experienced driver who “knew exactly what he was doing on that date.”

“He created a situation of danger.” Defence lawyer George Walker argued a “fit and proper sentence” would be more in the range of a five to nine months in jail.

He noted his client was not “totally to blame,” saying Motomitsu’s driving also contributed to the collision.

“Ms. Motomitsu was going to turn to the right come hell or high water,” he told the judge.

Court heard Motomitsu would likely have been charged under the Highway Traffic Act had she survived the crash.