Drunk driver has teary farewell with fiance before jailing
Man gets 4 1/2-years for part in 2016 death of 21-year-old Carseland woman
A sobbing Scott Andrews said a teary goodbye to his pregnant fiance Wednesday before being escorted to a jail cell to begin a 4 1/2-year prison term for the drunk-driving death of a Carseland woman.
Justice Rosemary Nation said the two-year sentence sought by defence lawyer Balfour Der, followed by probation, wasn’t enough considering Andrews’ past record.
The Court of Queen’s Bench judge noted Andrews had a prior impaired-driving conviction from 1999, plus multiple convictions for Traffic Safety Act breaches.
“The fine and the six-month driving prohibition (for his previous impaired) obviously did not teach you a lesson,” Nation said.
“You didn’t learn from your first conviction.”
But the judge stopped short of the 5 1/2- to six-year term being sought by Crown prosecutor Lori Chambers.
Nation said while Andrews’ punishment had to be significant enough to deter him and others from similar behaviour in the future, no sentence would give the family of Katie Ditto satisfaction.
“Nothing can restore Katie’s life, the only thing her family and friends want,” she told a packed courtroom.
Ditto, 21, died April 19, 2016, while driving home on Highway 797 south of Langdon.
Andrews, 38, lost control of his Ford F-350 pickup truck and swerved into Ditto, who was driving southbound around 11 p.m. that evening.
Andrews had been drinking and playing golf with some buddies at Sirocco Golf Club before the crash, and had been refused service by clubhouse staff because of his intoxication.
Andrews was permitted to hug his fiance and other family members before a sheriff ’s officer took him to a courtroom cell to be transferred to a federal penitentiary.
Outside court, Ditto’s mom, Kristie Adams, echoed Nation’s comments.
“Quite honestly, there would never be a sentence long enough, because that’s our daughter, right,” she said.
“Even if he got a life sentence or if they still did executions it wouldn’t be enough because it still wouldn’t bring back our daughter,” Adams said.
“What we’ve got to do is kind of move on and try and forgive.”
Adams said she had to forgive Andrews, “because I can’t hate somebody like that.”
Her estranged husband, Brian Ditto, wasn’t as forgiving.
Both he and the dead woman’s younger sister, Kevanne, questioned Andrews’ claimed remorse.
“He (dragged) us through this entire thing when he could’ve done the right thing (and pleaded guilty),” the father said.
“It was way too light. I don’t think it’s enough,” said Brian, as his daughter piped in: “It’s never going to be enough.
“Why wouldn’t he just plead guilty? It’s just a cowardly thing,” said Kevanne.
The sister said courts need to get tougher on impaired drivers to prevent future tragedies.
“They have to start getting put away for longer,” she said.