Dr. Christina Rudin-Brown

The accused, a transport truck driver, was charged with four counts of dangerous driving causing death and nine counts of dangerous driving causing bodily harm after colliding with multiple vehicles in a construction zone on Highway 401.

The Crown proved the actus reus, showing the accused failed to slow down despite clear signage and stopped traffic.

The defence argued the accused experienced a 'micro-sleep' due to undiagnosed sleep apnea and chronic renal disease, negating the mens rea.

The court rejected the expert evidence of a micro-sleep, finding the accused's prolonged inattention and failure to brake constituted a marked departure from the standard of care of a reasonable person.

The accused was found guilty on all counts.

The appellant motorcyclist was rendered paraplegic after colliding with the respondent's recycling truck, which was making a left turn.

A jury found the appellant 100% responsible for the accident.

On appeal, the appellant argued the verdict was unreasonable and that expert evidence was improperly adduced during cross-examination.

The Court of Appeal dismissed the appeal, finding the jury's verdict was not so plainly unreasonable that no jury could have reached it, and that the expert evidence elicited on cross-examination was not outside the witnesses' expertise.