Parole board considers CBS man’s plan realistic with sound and attainable objectives
Thomas Whittle granted full parole about a year after he was sentenced for causing Justyn Pollard’s death in a snowmobile crash at the Humber Valley Resort
CORNER BROOK — The Parole Board of Canada has granted full parole to a Conception Bay South man who caused the death of another man in a 2017 snowmobile accident at Humber Valley Resort.
Thomas Whittle had been sentenced to nearly three years in jail in April 2021 following his conviction in the Supreme Court of Newfoundland and Labrador in Corner Brook on charges of impaired driving causing death and dangerous driving causing death.
Twenty-one-year-old Justyn Pollard of St. John’s was killed when the snowmobile he was a passenger on collided with a taxi on the bridge at the west coast resort on Feb. 19, 2017.
Whittle was driving the snowmobile but claimed that it had been Pollard who had control of the machine from the passenger seat behind him. It was a suggestion that was not accepted by the jury that convicted him in January 2021.
Whittle admitted to drinking heavily on the night of the accident and his blood alcohol concentration was above the legal limit.
Whittle, who is in his 30s, experimented with marijuana in his late teens and started drinking around the same time. He has described himself as a social drinker but said he stopped drinking after he was charged and placed on conditions.
Correctional Service Canada identified education/employment as an asset to his community adjustment.
File information used by the board, which previously granted Whittle day parole in October 2021, indicates he had a positive upbringing and while his offences have put a strain on familial relationships, his family remains supportive of him.
Whittle is considered engaged in his correctional plan and his levels of accountability and motivation are rated as moderate and his reintegration potential is rates as high.
During his incarceration Whittle was seen as a quiet and respectful inmate.
He was charged with and pleaded guilty to an institutional charge for having an anti-inflammatory pill in his cell.
Since his release on day parole on Oct. 25, 2021, the board said Whittle has been following his release plan. There was no information indicating he breached any of his conditions and his supports expressed positivity about his release.
His plan for full parole includes continuing to live in a family environment and running his own business. That plan is viewed as realistic by the board with sound and attainable objectives.
The board did express concern about the seriousness of the offences committed by Whittle and said the offence represents an escalation in severity of his risk-taking behaviour.
“You have demonstrated the potential for serious offences related to substance abuse. This speaks of the type of crime you could commit should you reoffend,” it said.
But the board said it believes he has been addressing his substance abuse through abstinence and noted that he is motivated to maintaining long-term change.
Being mindful of public safety, the board acknowledged that Whittle’s offences are serious and caused a death.
“The victim’s family will be impacted by your behaviour over their entire life,” it said.
In granting full parole the board imposed three conditions on Whittle. He is not to consume, purchase or possess alcohol; not to consume, purchase or possess drugs other than prescribed medication taken as prescribed and over the counter drugs taken as recommended by the manufacturer; and he is to have no direct or indirect contact with any member of the victim’s family.
The board said the latter condition is reasonable and necessary in order to protect the victim’s family from unnecessary anguish.