Alberta government 'did not comply' with court order to hand over documents about rural intersection: lawyer
CBC
The Alberta government has not complied with a court order to hand over complete records relating to a problematic rural intersection, causing further delays in a fatal dangerous driving trial, a Calgary lawyer told a judge Monday.
Augustin Henry is on trial on charges of dangerous driving causing death and dangerous driving causing bodily harm after he blew a stop sign on Highway 564 in January 2020.
Henry crashed his rental SUV into a car headed northbound on Highway 9, about six kilometres east of Delacour, Alta., in Rocky View County. The crash killed Daniel Bzdel, and the victim’s 10-year-old daughter suffered life-threatening injuries and remained in hospital for months with a traumatic brain injury.
Last month, following an application made by defence lawyer Curtis Mennie, Court of King’s Bench Justice Janice Ashcroft ordered the province to release records relating to the intersection, where at least five people have been killed in the last 18 months.
Mennie believes the department of transportation may have evidence that the intersection is inherently dangerous, which could affect his case. The transportation ministry previously told CBC News that it is working towards installing a roundabout in the intersection.
But Mennie says “the ministry did not comply with the subpoena,” providing incomplete and inaccurate records.
The judge ordered the government to release information related to “all serious and fatal collision reports at that intersection submitted over the last 10 years,” including statistics, summaries and recommendations.
On top of that, Ashcroft ordered the ministry to hand over documents related to upcoming changes to that intersection, including a potential roundabout, and recommendations as to why the change is needed.
“There is nothing about that,” said Mennie. “This court ordered that be disclosed.”
Mennie also said the government did not hand over any records from 2024 or 2025.
And, in its summary of 2023, the records show no collisions in the intersection.
But in June of that year, the RCMP confirmed two sisters from France were taken to hospital in life-threatening condition when their SUV was hit by a semi-truck in that location.
A lawyer for the government told the judge that the defence should make another application if they want access to the records the judge ordered disclosed.
Ashcroft disagreed, telling lawyer Tunahan Uygun to go back to his client and ask about the missing information.
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