‘Nonsensical’ motion dismissed at crash trial
The sentencing of a Wainfleet woman who pleaded guilty to driving into the back of a motorcycle, killing a 45-yearold veteran and maiming his wife, will continue after a judge dismissed a motion to strike her plea.
Brooke Eden, 29, was to be sentenced Tuesday in Ontario Court of Justice in St. Catharines.
Eden filed a motion to have the plea struck on Jan. 6, almost seven months after she pleaded guilty to impaired driving causing death, impaired driving causing bodily harm and failing to remain.
In her submissions to the judge Tuesday, she claimed she only pleaded guilty to the charges under duress and accused the Crown of slander and “aggressive arrogance and judicial misconduct.”
“It was a wrongful prosecution,” she said. “I was indicted unlawfully.”
Judge Joseph Nadel said he was satisfied the plea was voluntary and dismissed her motion.
He described the defendant’s submissions as “nonsensical and legal gobbledygook.”
“She is not unintelligent,” Nadel added. “But, she is far from as smart as she thinks she is.”
Greg Caissie, a 45-year-old Welland man who did two tours of duty in Afghanistan and two tours in Bosnia with the Canadian Forces during his 16-year military career, died Oct. 10, 2018, after the motorcycle he was riding was struck by a car at Buchner Road and Highway 140. His wife suffered “life-altering” injuries.
“I want to express my sincere condolences to his family,” Eden said. “It was an accident.”
“This is an accidental death. I didn’t murder anyone.”
The Crown is seeking five years in a penitentiary and a lifetime driving ban.
Eden on Tuesday said an appropriate penalty would be house arrest followed by a driving ban of one to two years.
She also told the judge the conditions she experienced while in jail for violating a court order were suboptimal.
She said she suffered from hypothermia from sleeping on the floor, had to eat a restricted diet and was regularly subjected to strip searches. She also had to cut her hair with toenail clippers and had limited access to her orthotics and retainer.
The judge told the defendant a sentence must be proportionate to the crime and address the gravity of the offences.
“Mr. Cassie died. You can’t get much graver than that,” Nadel said.
He will deliver his decision Feb. 7.
Eden on Tuesday also challenged the results of her toxicology test and suggested contributing factors in the collision could have been poor street lighting, faulty brakes on her vehicle, and/or the driving conduct of another vehicle.
Court heard Eden was approaching the intersection when she slammed into the rear of one vehicle before swerving into the oncoming lane and striking the motorcycle. She fled on foot and was later found by police on Ridge Road. She had been knocking on doors, offering cash to residents if they agreed to drive her to another location.
Eden requested a publication ban Tuesday, saying her case has been “sensationalized” in the media. The judge said he did not have the authority to issue a ban.