Appeal to begin for woman convicted of injuring girl in Saanich crosswalk
A woman convicted in a tragic crosswalk incident that left a young Saanich girl with life-altering injuries will begin appealing her case Wednesday.
Court documents show Tenessa Nikirk will start her BC Court of Appeals case in Victoria this week.
The 24-year-old is attempting to overturn her conviction on a charge of dangerous operation of a motor vehicle causing bodily harm.
Nikirk was found guilty last year for the 2017 crash that left 11-year-old Leila Bui with life-altering brain injuries. Nikirk was sentenced to two years in prison on Dec. 21, 2020.
Two weeks later, on Jan. 5, Nikirk was released from custody pending an appeal of her conviction.
As a condition of her release, Nikirk is not to get behind the wheel of any vehicle, according to her lawyer, Donald McKay.
During her trial, the court heard that Nikirk was texting and speeding when she struck Bui in a marked crosswalk.
A video expert testified that Nikirk’s SUV was travelling in excess of 100 km/h before the crash and only came to a stop about 18 to 20 metres beyond where it struck the girl in the crosswalk at Ash Road and Torquay Drive.
Witnesses also testified that Nikirk had crossed a solid yellow line into the oncoming lane to pass vehicles before the crash.
Bui suffered what the Crown described during the trial as "catastrophic injuries," including a permanent brain injury, a broken neck and a ruptured spleen.
At the time of Nikirk's conviction in 2020, the Bui family said it was mentally exhausted from going through court procedures and felt much of the process was unjust.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'They needed people inside Air Canada:' Police announce arrests in Pearson gold heist
Police say one former and one current employee of Air Canada are among the nine suspects that are facing charges in connection with the gold heist at Pearson International Airport last year.
House admonishes ArriveCan contractor in rare parliamentary show of power
MPs enacted an extraordinary, rarely used parliamentary power on Wednesday, summonsing an ArriveCan contractor to appear before the House of Commons where he was admonished publicly and forced to provide answers to the questions MPs said he'd previously evaded.
Leafs star Auston Matthews finishes season with 69 goals
Auston Matthews won't be joining the NHL's 70-goal club this season.
Trump lawyers say Stormy Daniels refused subpoena outside a Brooklyn bar, papers left 'at her feet'
Donald Trump's legal team says it tried serving Stormy Daniels a subpoena as she arrived for an event at a bar in Brooklyn last month, but the porn actor, who is expected to be a witness at the former president's criminal trial, refused to take it and walked away.
Why drivers in Eastern Canada could see big gas price spikes, and other Canadians won't
Drivers in Eastern Canada face a big increase in gas prices because of various factors, especially the higher cost of the summer blend, industry analysts say.
Doug Ford calls on Ontario Speaker to reverse Queen's Park keffiyeh ban
Ontario Premier Doug Ford is calling on Speaker Ted Arnott to reverse a ban on keffiyehs at Queen's Park, describing the move as “needlessly” divisive.
'A living nightmare': Winnipeg woman sentenced following campaign of harassment against man after online date
A Winnipeg woman was sentenced to house arrest after a single date with a man she met online culminated in her harassing him for years, and spurred false allegations which resulted in the innocent man being arrested three times.
Woman who pressured boyfriend to kill his ex in 2000s granted absences from prison
A woman who pressured her boyfriend into killing his teenage ex more than a decade ago will be allowed to leave prison for weeks at a time.
Customers disappointed after email listing $60K Tim Hortons prize sent in error
Several Tim Horton’s customers are feeling great disappointment after being told by the company that an email stating they won a boat worth nearly $60,000 was sent in error.