VICTORIA -- The BC Prosecution Service says that no charges will be laid in a high-speed, four-vehicle crash that sent multiple people to hospital in downtown Victoria last year.
The crash occurred shortly after midnight on Aug. 24, 2019 at the intersection of Douglas Street and Bay Street. Surveillance footage of the crash showed a truck driving through the intersection, causing significant damage to other vehicles, nearly hitting a passing cyclist.
At the time, Victoria police said the crash was caused by a truck driver who was fleeing from police in the Gorge area.
VicPD said that officers tried to pull over the truck when it “fled at a high rate of speed.”
The Independent Investigations Office of BC later confirmed in a review of the incident that responding officers did not pursue the vehicle, as is police protocol, and the crash was “the direct result of the actions of the pickup’s driver.”
After the crash occurred, police say that the driver attempted to flee the scene of the collision on foot. He was arrested the same night by officers.
While no one involved in the crash suffered life-threatening injuries, several GoFundMe campaigns were set up following the collision for victims of the crash who were unable to work due to injuries sustained in the incident.
The injuries included a “serious concussion” for one driver of the crash, a nurse and mother of three, as well as “debilitating injuries and severe pain” that lingered in another driver, who reportedly also suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder from the crash, according to the online fundraisers.
Now, the BC Prosecution Service says that no charges are being approved for the crash due to limited evidence.
“After reviewing all the available evidence the assessing Crown Counsel was unable to conclude that the charge assessment standard was met,” the service told CTV News in a statement Monday.
The charge assessment is a two-part test, according to the service, which includes “a substantial likelihood of conviction; and, if so, whether the public interest requires a prosecution.”
