Parole denied for Dollard impaired driver
Pills, cocaine, beer and a fatal crash
A man who killed a pedestrian in Dollard-des-Ormeaux while driving after having consumed a combination of medication, narcotics and beer has been denied parole as he continues to serve a six-year sentence.
Yvan Grandmaison, 42, received the sentence in June 2013 after being found guilty of impaired driving causing death and bodily harm. On Feb. 21, 2012, he was driving near his home when his car struck Ngnan Wong Lee, 73, and her 72-year-old husband, Shui Poon Hui. Lee died after being struck, and Hui was still hospitalized when Grandmaison was sentenced in June 2013.
The trial revealed Grandmaison had consumed a powerful antidepressant just hours before he struck the couple. Despite a clear warning from a doctor and a written one on the prescription bottle, Grandmaison drank four beers after taking the pill and snorted cocaine before venturing out in his car to buy more beer and lottery tickets.
After he was arrested, Grandmaison continued to consume drugs while he was detained and incurred such a large debt to a drug dealer that he requested to be placed under special protection at a detention centre. When he was sentenced last year, Grandmaison had four years and nine months left to serve.
He recently appeared before the Parole Board of Canada and requested day par- ole. Grandmaison told the board he felt he could control his problem with drugs and alcohol by continuing to participate in a rehabilitation program, continuing to see a psychologist and joining Alcoholics Anonymous. According to a written summary of the parole hearing, the board determined he was not ready because he is still in the early stages of his rehabilitation plan. The two parole board members who presided over the hearing noted that Grandmaison had access to several therapy programs in the past and failed to complete them. The board also informed Grandmaison that they had to be cautious because, at the time he killed Lee, he had a previous impaired driving conviction.