A Valemount man has been found guilty of dangerous driving causing death.
Duane Glen Smith, 43, was behind the steering wheel on Sept. 19, 2019 when the car he was driving went off Highway 16 near the Penny Access Road, about 100 kilometres east of Prince George. Smith's girlfriend, Dakota Shaw, 21, later died from injuries suffered in the crash.
Provincial court judge Judith Doulis issued the verdict on Thurs., Dec. 9. A count of impaired driving causing death was stayed.
At the start of a three-day trial in November, Crown prosecution alleged that in the lead up to the crash several civilians saw the car travelling at a high rate of speed and that an RCMP collision reconstructionist later determined a speed of between 141 and 149 km/h at the time of the crash.
Several civilians came to the couple's aid at the scene while one drove toward where there was cell service and, at about 5:20 p.m., called 911.
Shaw, who was ejected from the vehicle, was flown by helicopter to University Hospital of Northern British Columbia in Prince George where she was declared deceased early the next morning.
Upon arrival at the crash scene, RCMP found open cans of alcohol and the smell of liquor on Smith's breath, the court heard. He was arrested and transported to the Prince George RCMP detachment where he provided a breath sample that measured just 30 milligrams per litre of blood, or 0.03 per cent, well below the 0.08 per cent level at which a driver is considered criminally impaired.
But police also noticed some "stabbings on his arms" and, combined with some other observations, that led them to believe he may have been impaired by drugs and a drug recognition expert demand was read to him.
Sentencing will occur once a pre-sentence report has been completed.
