Teen sentenced for drug-impaired crash in stolen vehicle

A rural Westman teen who drove a stolen vehicle while drug-impaired and crashed on the Trans-Canada Highway has been sentenced to 45 days of time already served and two years of probation.

“You’re still a very young person, you’ve got a lot of life ahead of you,” Judge John Combs said on Tuesday in Brandon provincial court.

“The pattern in the last year or so is not a good one, and I’m sure you and I’m sure your family don’t want to see you spending a good part of your life in jail.”

The offender, 18, pleaded guilty to driving while impaired, theft of a motor vehicle, possessing property obtained by crime over $5,000 and two counts of breaching court-ordered conditions. The Sun cannot name the teen as he was under 18 at the time of his offences.

Crown attorney Sarah Kok outlined the facts of the case.

On Sept. 8, Virden RCMP responded to a collision involving a pickup truck and a semi-trailer on the Trans-Canada Highway.

The teen, who police recognized from previous interactions, was bleeding from his nose, mouth and hand. He told police that another person was driving the pickup and he was sleeping in the back seat when he “was thrown to the front seats on impact,” Kok said.

She said police noticed two car seats, among other items, in the back seat, making the teen’s version of events illogical, Kok said. Officers swabbed the driver’s seat airbag, and the teen’s DNA was on it.

Officers also noticed that he had watery, bloodshot eyes and was fidgety while speaking to them, which prompted them to take a breath sample.

The sample showed he had no alcohol in his system, but he was brought to the hospital, where he gave a sample of his blood. He told nurses at the hospital, in front of the officers, that he consumed a “large quantity” of methamphetamine the night before.

Kok said the test showed there were multiple drugs in his system, but most concerningly, 207 nanograms of methamphetamine.

“Forensic services typically indicate that anything above the range of 150 speaks of chronic drug users or people that are struggling with an addiction,” Kok said.

Luckily, no one in the other vehicle was hurt, Kok said.

The teen, she said, “was the one that suffered from the most injuries when the vehicle … crashed into the ditch and the airbag deployed. That vehicle is completely destroyed.”

The court heard that the owner of the vehicle later gave a statement to police and said the vehicle had been taken from his residence and he never consented to the teen using it.

The teen was released from police custody, and a few weeks later, on Sept. 22, Killarney RCMP received a call about a suspicious truck on the highway.

Police found out that this vehicle had been stolen and when they got to the scene, officers found clear fingerprints on the steering wheel and shifter, which belonged to the teen.

Kok said this will be the teen’s fifth conviction for possessing property obtained by crime.

“He had stolen vehicles from multiple rural properties in the communities of Killarney, Ninette and … Virden. It unfortunately appears that (he) has a proclivity for this kind of offending.”

The teen was arrested on these charges while in custody on charges he acquired from Saskatchewan in the meantime.

He was later released from custody again.

On Oct. 4, Brandon police stopped a vehicle in the 400 block of McTavish Avenue after seeing it almost crash into a curb. The teen was in the passenger seat and beside him was a machete. A small quantity of drugs and a can of pepper spray was also found in the vehicle, Kok said.

The teen was on conditions not to own, possess or carry any weapons, and police arrested him. He was held in custody and later released on a strict bail plan, which included that he not be in any kind of vehicle and abide by a curfew.

On Oct. 17, Killarney RCMP went to his home to do a curfew check and noticed a vehicle pulling in behind them in the driveway. The teen and two other people got out of the vehicle.

Officers arrested him, and he has remained in custody since.

Kok said now that he has turned 18, the teen will face more serious consequences if he continues to reoffend.

The Crown and defence jointly recommended a sentence of 45 days for theft of a motor vehicle and 30 concurrent days for driving while impaired. For the remainder of the charges, Kok asked for two years of supervised probation.

They also suggested a one-year driving prohibition and acknowledged that Manitoba Public Insurance will likely put further penalties in place.

» sanderson@brandonsun.com