More than a year after a collision on Yellowhead Trail left a young woman in a coma for several weeks, the driver who admitted to being distracted and causing the initial crash learned his sentence Monday.
Andrew Chapman, 27, learned he would face a fine of $2,000 in an Edmonton courtroom Monday, for pleading guilty to a charge of careless driving in a crash that unfolded March 15, 2013.
In an agreed statement of facts, Chapman admitted he was distracted by a vehicle speeding around him, as he merged onto Yellowhead Trail that day – he then attempted to change lanes, slamming into a stopped car.
That stopped car, with Renaye Wade inside, was then hit by a semi-truck.
After the crash, Wade spent 34 days in a coma – she suffered a broken pelvis, and her jaw was broken in two places, and she suffered a brain injury, an injury she’s still working to overcome. Renaye told CTV News outside of court that there is a chance she could be released from hospital in late June.
“My daughter will never be 100 percent, because someone didn’t pay attention in a moment, they were distracted,” Tammy Wade, Renaye’s mother, said outside of an Edmonton courtroom Monday.
“[Renaye] will still be continuing therapy for walking, regaining balance, use of her left arm.”
In court, an emotional Chapman said “I wish this never happened, I wish you could go on living your life, I’m deeply sorry.”
The Wade family said they accepted the sentence Chapman ultimately received, as it is the maximum penalty for the charge under the law – but it’s a law the Wade family is pushing to change.
“Careless driving and distracted driving needs to become a more serious offence,” Tammy Wade said. “Driving is a privilege; you can’t turn around, be distracted, and destroy people’s lives.”
The family has plans to meet with their MLA next week.
With files from Brenna Rose
