RCMP spokesperson Gord Molendyk
(CHARLOTTE HELSTON / iNFOnews.ca)
November 06, 2014 - 10:47 AM
VERNON - Valuable information has come forward in an impaired driving causing death investigation.
RCMP spokesperson Gord Molendyk says two men who were at the scene of a fatal accident downtown Vernon Oct. 23 contacted the detachment after a call out was posted in the media. At first, the men didn’t think they were the witnesses sought by police. They didn’t see the actual accident, only the aftermath. But that’s still very useful to investigators.
“What it does is it established what they did, who was at the scene, what their observations were,” Molendyk says. “All those pieces of the puzzle come together so we can present our case to Crown counsel.”
A Vernon Jubilee Hospital nurse, 33-year-old Erin Rae Smith, died in the crash. Her co-worker Lindsey Hauck, 31, was also in the car and sustained serious injuries. The 37-year-old driver of the vehicle that struck them is being investigated for impaired driving causing death and impaired driving causing bodily harm.
It could be some time before the police investigation wraps up and the evidence is presented to Crown counsel, who will decide whether or not to lay the criminal charges. Molendyk says investigators are working hard to build a strong case which can prove the offenses beyond a reasonable doubt in court.
“Somebody’s life has changed because of it,” Molendyk says.
To contact the reporter for this story, email Charlotte Helston at chelston@infonews.ca or call 250-309-5230. To contact the editor, email mjones@infonews.ca or call 250-718-2724.
News from © iNFOnews, 2014