SUPERIOR COURT OF JUSTICE
YOUTH CRIMINAL JUSTICE COURT
Neutral Citation No. 7649
Indictment No. YC-11-00000714-0000
IN THE MATTER OF the Youth Criminal Justice Act,
S.C. 2002, c.1
HER MAJESTY THE QUEEN
v.
S.K.
REASONS FOR SENTENCE
BEFORE THE HONOURABLE JUSTICE A. SOSNA
on, November 16, 2015 at NEWMARKET, Ontario
PROTECTED FROM PUBLICATION BY SECTIONS 110(1) and
111(1) OF THE YOUTH CRIMINAL JUSTICE ACT
BY ORDER OF SOSNA, J. ON APRIL 7, 2015
APPEARANCES:
R. Scott Counsel for the Crown
J. Fuller Counsel for the Crown
J. Lockyer Counsel for S.K.
S. Wickramasinghe Counsel for S.K.
MONDAY, NOVEMBER 16, 2015
R E A S O N S F O R S E N T E N C E
In the early morning hours of June 28th, 2011, S.K., an unlicensed driver, was joy riding in the family van with his three teenager passengers. He was stopped and investigated for speeding by an on duty police officer, Constable Garrett Styles.
S.K. was advised by Constable Styles that the van was to be impounded because of the speeding infraction. S.K. refused to exit the vehicle when ordered to do so. The officer opened the driver’s door and undid S.K.’s seatbelt. The van left the shoulder of the road and entered the highway, veering uncontrollably across both north and southbound lanes. The upper portion of Constable Styles’s body remained in the van with his legs hanging outside the open door.
The van crossed the highway, entered a field, became airborne, rolled, and came to a stop. Constable Styles was ejected from the van and was pinned under the driver’s side tire. He died as a result of his injuries.
Although S.K. survived the crash, he was rendered a quadriplegic, permanently paralyzed from the chest down.
On June 18th, 2015, after trial, S.K. was convicted by a jury with the first-degree murder of Constable Styles. Murder in this case is “first-degree” because the victim was a police officer acting in the course of his duties. I cite section 231(4)(a) of the Criminal Code of Canada, R.S.C. 1985, c. C-46.
S.K. was remanded out of custody for sentencing. Submissions were heard on October 22nd and 23rd, 2015. He was further remanded to November 16th, 2015 for sentencing.
VICTIM IMPACT STATEMENTS
During the sentencing submissions 10 victim impact statements were introduced as Exhibits 2(A) through 2(J). The victim impact statements were provided by members of Garrett Styles’s family and friends. Some of the statements were read into the record by their authors. Without exception the statements speak of the horrific and painful impact the tragic death of Garrett Styles has had on them and those they love.
The statements were moving and heartbreaking, particularly the statement of his young wife, Melissa, who stated that because of the death of her husband she went from being a happily married woman with two young children ages two and one half years old and two months old, to a 31 year old widow with two fatherless children. The statement of Gary Styles, retired police officer and father of Garrett Styles, described how the “truly senseless and unnecessary act” committed by S.K. has devastated their immediate and extended family.
Filed as Exhibit 3 was a compact disc depicting, amongst other things, Constable Styles’s funeral procession attended by hundreds of police officers and thousands of citizens resident in Newmarket where Constable Styles had lived, raised his young family, and as a police officer served and protected that community. In the CD the community, by its very turnout in the thousands, spoke to the profound impact Constable Styles’s death had on them.
THE OFFENDER
PRESENTENCE REPORT
A presentence report, Exhibit 1, was prepared and filed for sentencing purposes. The 13-page report sets out S.K.’s upbringing, family background, educational status, and surrounding circumstances that led to the offence. The report also provides an overview of S.K.’s injuries and the medical requirements for his future care.
S.K. was born on […], 1995 and as previously noted was 15 when he committed the offence. He is presently 19 year old. He has no previous record.
S.K.’s parents generally reported no concerns about his development or behaviour as he grew up, except for the one very important incident in January 2011 when the police brought him home after he was caught driving the family car without their knowledge and being unlicensed. He was reprimanded by his parents and grounded.
S.K.’s parents owned and operated a breakfast restaurant. Prior to his injuries S.K. was expected to help in the daily chores after school of running the restaurant and he did so without complaint or opposition.
Being immigrants from Sri Lanka, his parents had expectations that the children would apply themselves in their education. Elementary records indicate that S.K. displayed a consistent effort and was a well-liked member at school as he grew into a self confident and independent student.
S.K. entered grade 9 in 2009 and attended high school until sustaining his injuries in June 2011. His injuries required immediate emergency surgery. Thereafter he remained in detention while convalescing in hospital. While continuing to be in detention he was transferred to Lyndhurst Centre for treatment and rehabilitation. He was medically discharged on December 23, 2012. Discharge records confirm that for the most part S.K. was polite, respectful, and interacted well with the staff.
S.K. was granted bail on November 28, 2011. There are no reported violations of his bail conditions during the four years of his bail release.
Despite his injuries and medical challenges, S.K. resumed his education while on bail release with the assistance of a teacher through the York Catholic District School Board. S.K. used a voice mail activated iPad to assist him in his educational goals. Presently he is close to earning his high school diploma and has achieved excellent marks in his courses. S.K. has expressed an interest in pursuing post secondary studies in either computer engineering, mechanical engineering, or automotive engineering, either at Waterloo or UOIT in Oshawa.
S.K. was cooperative in the preparation of the presentence report and presented himself in a polite and articulate manner. He acknowledged his responsibility in taking his parents vehicle without their knowledge on multiple occasions prior to the offence. He admitted taking the vehicle under the same circumstances on the night of the offence. When asked by the author of the presentence report to discuss his feelings regarding the offence S.K. replied that he felt “very sad” about what had happened, specifically the loss of the victim’s life and the impact the offence had had on everyone. He maintained he had no intent to cause Constable Styles’s death and was shocked by the guilty verdict. He was anxious about receiving a custodial sentence, but stated he would follow whatever conditions or sentence the court imposed.
[The remainder of the judgment continues exactly as in the source, preserving all wording and structure.]