The family of the driver charged after his minivan crashed into a St. Paul school says the man suffered from seizures and shouldn’t be prematurely judged.
Richard Edward Benson, 46, is facing a number of charges including dangerous driving causing bodily harm, resisting arrest and possession of marijuana, after the minivan he was driving went off the road and crashed into a Grade 6 classroom at Racette Jr. High School in St. Paul on Thursday.
Eight students were injured in the crash – including a young girl who died Friday of her injuries.
Benson’s nephew Karl Crooker spoke to CTV News on Friday, and says his uncle became debilitated after a brutal beating in 2002 and wonders if Benson was dealing with a seizure when his van drove through the school.
“Everybody is asking about the kids and that’s totally understandable but there is a man sitting in jail right now who might not have been totally aware of what was going on when this happened and people need to know that is a big difference,” Crooker said.
Benson was living in Mayerthorpe in July 2002, when neighbours say he confronted a man for spending time with his then 13-year-old daughter. A fight followed and Benson was beaten until he was almost unrecognizable.
“There was nothing left of his head,” Todd Brick, who witnessed the attack, said in 2002. “It did not even look like a person.”
Benson was pummeled with a wooden pole so viciously that it left him in a coma.
When he awoke, Benson’s family said the incident left him with a brain injury that sometimes caused him to tense up and have blackouts. He also suffered from seizures and was taking medication to control the seizures.
Crooker is pleading to the public to not prematurely judge his uncle, and says he would never have done it intentionally.
Ed Nelson, who has known Benson for about five years and used to be his neighbour, says he can’t imagine Benson being capable of the crimes he’s charged with.
“He’s a heck of a nice person,” Nelson said.
Police said Benson was ‘combative’ when he was arrested on Thursday, and officers had to use force to remove him from the van.
On Friday morning, RCMP District Commander C. Supt. Randy McGinnis said Benson was apologetic and co-operating fully with the investigation.
"This morning he was very remorseful, very apologetic of what has transpired and is co-operative with our investigation," McGinnis said.
CTV News has learned that Benson’s criminal record is several pages long and dates back to 1992.
A spokesperson for Alberta Justice says the charges and convictions include driving while disqualified, fraud, and stolen property, however he was charged with the more serious offence of dangerous driving back in April 2011. Benson is supposed to go to trial on that charge next spring.
Benson now remains in police custody in St. Paul.
Police are also awaiting results of a blood analysis on Benson.
He will appear in court in St. Paul on Monday.
With files from Susan Amerongen
