Appeal denied for woman convicted of striking girl in Saanich crosswalk
A woman who was convicted of crashing into a young girl at a crosswalk in Saanich, B.C., in December 2017 has had her appeal denied.
In 2020, Tenessa Nikirk was found guilty of dangerous driving for a crash that left 11-year-old Leila Bui with traumatic brain injuries.
During the trial, the court heard that Nikirk was speeding, passing vehicles, and texting before the crash occurred.
Two weeks after sentencing, Nikirk filed an appeal of her conviction and was released on bail until her appeal hearing was complete.
The hearing began in mid-January, and on Tuesday, a B.C. judge denied Nikirk's appeal, which was based on factors such as reaction time, credibility of witnesses and experts who testified during trial, and if she was manually texting at the time.
"Ms. Nikirk’s theory on appeal, in summary, is that the verdict was unreasonable because the child could have been hidden from Ms. Nikirk’s view until the child ran into the crosswalk, at which point it was too late for Ms. Nikirk to react," reads the appeal ruling written by Madam Justice Susan Griffin.
Griffin found that while it is conceivable that Bui entered the crosswalk before an average driver would have had time to react, the fact that Nikirk was speeding before and at the time of the crash demonstrated a failure to observe obvious cues to use caution around a crosswalk.
The appeal judge also found that it was irrelevant if Nikirk was manually texting or using another method since the "sheer number and frequency of texts" sent around the time of the crash meant her thoughts were elsewhere at the time.
"This case serves as a very sad cautionary tale that texting while driving can ruin lives," wrote Griffin.
"In my view, the inference from all the evidence is compelling: that Ms. Nikirk was texting with someone repeatedly and was driving distractedly and impatiently and that this was part of a dangerous pattern of driving that led to her driving at full speed into a child in the crosswalk."
In December 2020, the then-24-year-old Nikirk was sentenced to two years in a federal penitentiary and is banned from driving for three years upon her release.
With her appeal dismissed Tuesday, she is required to surrender herself today to begin serving her sentence.
During the trial, Crown described Bui's injuries as "catastrophic," including a permanent brain injury, a broken neck and a ruptured spleen.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
B.C. seeks ban on public drug use, dialing back decriminalization
The B.C. NDP has asked the federal government to recriminalize public drug use, marking a major shift in the province's approach to addressing the deadly overdose crisis.
Orca calf that was trapped in B.C. lagoon for weeks swims free
An orca whale calf that has been stranded in a B.C. lagoon for weeks after her pregnant mother died swam out on her own early Friday morning.
Trump's lawyers try to discredit testimony of prosecution's first witness in hush money trial
Donald Trump's defence team attacked the credibility Friday of the prosecution's first witness in his hush money case, seeking to discredit testimony detailing a scheme between Trump and a tabloid to bury negative stories to protect the Republican's 2016 presidential campaign.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau on navigating post-political life, co-parenting and freedom
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
More than 115 cases of eye damage reported in Ontario after solar eclipse
More than 115 people who viewed the solar eclipse in Ontario earlier this month experienced eye damage after the event, according to eye doctors in the province.
'I was scared': Ontario man's car repossessed after missing two repair loan payments
An Ontario man who took out a loan to pay for auto repairs said his car was repossessed after he missed two payments.
Last letters of pioneering climber who died on Everest reveal dark side of mountaineering
George Mallory is renowned for being one of the first British mountaineers to attempt to scale the dizzying heights of Mount Everest during the 1920s. Nearly a century later, newly digitized letters shed light on Mallory’s hopes and fears about ascending Everest.
Air traveller complaints to Canadian Transportation Agency hit new high
The Canadian Transportation Agency has hit a record high of more than 71,000 complaints in a backlog. The quasi-judicial regulator and tribunal tasked with settling disputes between customers and the airlines says the backlog is growing because the number of incoming complaints keeps increasing.
U.S. flight attendant indicted in attempt to record teen girl in airplane bathroom
An American Airlines flight attendant was indicted Thursday after authorities said he tried to secretly record video of a 14-year-old girl using an airplane bathroom last September.