Latest news with #DodgeCaravan
Calgary Herald
8 hours ago
- Calgary Herald
Driver pleads guilty in horrific Boxing Day crash that killed nine-year-old girl
Shocking video was played in a Calgary courtroom Friday showing a stolen, speeding van run a red light and crash into several vehicles, and the aftermath in which emergency workers frantically tried to save the life of a nine-year-old girl. Article content Members of Victoria Desjardins' family cried and moaned in pain as video showing the lifeless girl being removed from her mother's car, where police and fire officials attempted to get a pulse while performing CPR. Article content Article content Article content Nepoose also admitted causing bodily harm to the girl's mother and older sister, as well as another motorist while speeding through a red light on Macleod Trail. Article content According to the statement of agreed facts read in by Buziak and signed by defence lawyers Sam Taylor and Rebecca Snukal, as well as their client, Nepoose was fleeing from police after robbing a Millrise pharmacy and stealing the owner's Dodge Caravan. Article content Article content Buziak said officers initially tried to make a traffic stop of the stolen vehicle around 9:41 a.m., but Nepoose sped off. Article content The HAWCS police helicopter then tracked the vehicle as it drove on several major roadways in southwest Calgary, at one time accelerating to approximately 170 km/h, the prosecutor said. Article content Article content It eventually ended up on eastbound Stoney Trail before heading northbound on Macleod. Article content 'The vehicle continued traveling northbound on Macleod Trail travelling through the red lights at the intersections of 109th Avenue and also 99th Avenue before entering the intersection of Southland Drive against the red light,' Buziak said. Article content Nepoose struck two vehicles travelling westbound on Southland Drive, including a silver Pontiac Vibe being driven by Victoria's mother, Amanda Reitmeier. Article content 'A video recording of the collision was recorded by a dash camera of a vehicle situated in the eastbound lane of Southland Driver,' Buziak said. Article content Reitmeier and her two daughters, Madison Desjardins, 12, and Victoria, were seriously injured, the prosecutor told court. Article content
Yahoo
18 hours ago
- Yahoo
Retired deputy dies at home, three months after horrific car crash. I-Team found it might have been prevented
The Brief Patricia Carper, 64, died at home last month, 15 weeks after a one-vehicle crash in Gwinnett County left her and her husband trapped overnight in an overturned Dodge Caravan. An investigation by the FOX 5 I-Team, aired in March while Carper was still hospitalized, found the wreck might have been prevented. Before the Feb. 4 crash, the head football coach at nearby Seckinger High School had been lobbying Gwinnett County Transportation to install a barrier at the end of the road, but the county backed away after the new city of Mulberry formed. Mulberry, though, doesn't have a roads department. Carper's daughter says she never recovered from the wreck and blames the dangerous road for her mother's death. MULBERRY, Ga. - What happened to Patricia and Walt Carper had happened multiple times before on West Rock Quarry Road. And it might have been prevented, a FOX 5 I-Team investigation found. For months before the crash, the head football coach at nearby Seckinger High School had begged Gwinnett County's Department of Transportation to install some kind of barrier at the dead end, where the Carpers would careen into an embankment. "All I know is that people are getting hurt, and there's a very real chance somebody's going to lose their life," Coach Tony Lotti told the I-Team in March. At that time, Carper was still hospitalized. What we know Carper, a retired Clarke County Sheriff's deputy, died in her home May 20, according to her Georgia death certificate. Even before the crash, she suffered from kidney and heart problems, and she had just been discharged from a hospital stay in Braselton when the wreck happened Feb. 4. She suffered broken ribs, bruising and oxygen deprivation in the ordeal. Her daughter, Heidi Rutledge, said that for the next 15 weeks, her mother was in and out of hospital care. She remained in constant pain, had difficulty breathing, suffered an infection from being intubated, and lost the use of her left hand from lying on her arm for so long before her rescue, Heidi said. She had been out of the hospital for 12 days before she died. The cause of death on her death certificate: "acute and chronic respiratory failure with hypoxia (lack of oxygen)." "The wreck caused my mom's death," Heidi told the I-Team. "She was up on her feet when she came out of the hospital the first time, before the wreck," she said. "But after the wreck, she'd been bedbound and couldn't hardly move her body." The backstory The day of the crash, Heidi said her stepfather, Walt Carper, picked her mother up at the hospital. Then after a stop at a grocery store, her mother took the driver's seat of the Dodge Caravan and headed back toward their home in Barrow County. But she took a wrong turn in the dark at a roundabout and wound up on the south end of West Rock Quarry Road, which runs along the back side of Seckinger High School in Gwinnett. The Carpers had no way of knowing it, but for months Coach Lotti had been lobbying county DOT to make safety improvements to the road. Some students had been T-boned turning left out of a school exit, along with multiple other accidents involving drivers running off the dead end. "We'll be sitting on the front porch or doing something out here, and I'll see cars just flying down here," West Rock Quarry Road resident George Grob told the I-Team in March. "And then we'll hear them go off. I bet I've come down here for probably 10 or 15 people. "One night, it was two of them," Grob said. "Like, within an hour of each other." Coach Lotti asked the county for speed breakers, as well as a barricade at the cul-de-sac. With poor lighting, the distant lights of I-85 created an illusion that the roadway kept going, he said. Heidi said that's what misled her mother. "She looked through the trees, and I guess she (saw) that it was ongoing cars, so she thought it was an ongoing road," Heidi said. Driving off the embankment was only the beginning of the Carpers' suffering. The minivan landed on its side, and neither Patricia nor Walt could reach their cell phones. A Gwinnett County Police report estimated the crash time at 7 p.m. Heidi said she tried to call them every few hours. She finally went to her parents' home, found her mother's tablet, and located her mother's phone just north of the interstate. She called police to report them missing just after noon on Feb. 5. Around the same time, some passersby found the Carpers, Gwinnett County 911 records show. It was past 1 p.m. when both Patricia and Walt had been extracted. It was a school day. "When we heard about the couple that was stranded, my heart just sunk," Lotti said. "We had no idea they were there." Walt, 71, suffered a brain injury in the crash. He's still recovering in a nursing and rehabilitation facility in Monroe, his stepdaughter said. Why you should care Late last year, Gwinnett DOT had been working with Lotti to address safety hazards on the road. The county conducted a traffic study, recording speeds as high as 90 and 100 miles per hour, where the speed limit is 25. DOT added two new signs – one saying, "School," another saying, "Dead end 1000 feet." Lotti said he and traffic officials discussed adding speed breakers. But then everything came to a stop. Mulberry, a new city, formed on Jan. 1. "Congratulations! You are now in the new city of Mulberry," a traffic analyst told Lotti in an email obtained by the I-Team. "Unfortunately, we do not have an agreement with the City of Mulberry to install speed humps inside the city limits. We are stopping all progress and closing the request for a Public Hearing for West Rock Quarry Road." The email referred Lotti to the city's website. The trouble there: The city doesn't have a roads department. Its charter, approved by the state Legislature and ratified by voters, says the county must keep up roadwork during a two-year transition period. But Gwinnett and Mulberry have been locked in a heated dispute over the charter, which the county contends shifts too much financial burden to county taxpayers. The county is challenging the charter in court, the case currently with the Georgia Court of Appeals. The county filed another lawsuit last month against the state over Senate Bill 138, aimed specifically at Gwinnett and stripping its sovereign immunity for a year if a judge finds it violated the new law. Sponsored by the area's Republican state senator, Clint Dixon, the bill passed this year and was signed by Gov. Brian Kemp. When the I-Team contacted Gwinnett DOT Director Lewis Cooksey earlier this year, he said the county would need to have an intergovernmental agreement with Mulberry before putting any more work into West Rock Quarry Road. But the second time the I-Team reached out, Cooksey agreed safety is paramount and said the county would make additional safety improvements after all. Within days, a barrier had been erected at the dead end, and a new warning – "Road closed ahead" – was painted in giant letters on the road surface. "We were happy to help," Cooksey told the I-Team in a text. "We will continue to monitor the area and we ask that everyone use the utmost caution when traveling." Cooksey did not respond to messages about this story, and Gwinnett County Transportation had no comment on Patricia Carper's death. What they're saying "I think this is a perfectly good example of why we need to work together," Mulberry Mayor Michael Coker said. Coker said West Rock Quarry Road will be the city's responsibility eventually, but for now, it's the county's job to maintain it. "You guys came out and did that story, you brought attention to this issue," he said of FOX 5's story in March. "And ultimately the county made the changes, they put up those barricades. So I think that tells you everything you need to know, as to whose responsibility was that road." Heidi said her mother would still be alive if the barricade had gone up sooner. Local perspective Patricia Carper served 22 years with Clarke County, retiring in 2010. She worked as a jailer, and a spokeswoman for the sheriff's office said she's remembered as an excellent marksman. She's also remembered for taking over operations of the Athens jail in May 2000, the spokeswoman said. That was so other deputies could attend the funeral of a lieutenant who had died on duty in a car crash. Carper was laid to rest Wednesday at St. Matthew Catholic Church in Winder. She's survived by her husband, two children and three grandsons. The Source The FOX 5 I-Team reported in March how Gwinnett County's Transportation Department backed off safety improvements to a treacherous road, just before a Barrow County couple's horrific ordeal running off the roadway in February. For that story, the I-Team reviewed traffic reports, a traffic study, accident reports and photos of past wrecks provided by school personnel and residents. This story was prompted when the daughter of the driver in the February crash informed reporter Johnny Edwards that her mother died.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Shelby Township police fatally shoot Troy man who fled traffic stop, drew weapon
The Brief Shelby Township police shot and killed a man who drew a gun while being pursued by officers Tuesday afternoon. The fatal shooting stemmed from a traffic stop at 22 Mile and Van Dyke that unraveled around 3:15 p.m. The individual who fled police is identified as a 41-year-old man from Troy. SHELBY TOWNSHIP, Mich. (FOX 2) - Shelby Township police fatally shot a man who fled a traffic stop Tuesday afternoon. The Macomb County Sheriff's Office is now overseeing the investigation. What we know Around 3:15 p.m., Shelby Township police attempted a traffic stop on a Dodge Caravan in the area of 22 Mile and Van Dyke. A single occupant exited the vehicle and fled on foot. Officers pursued the individual, chasing him behind a business where the deputy deployed a taser. At the same time, the fleeing suspect drew a weapon and pointed it in the vicinity of the officer who was chasing him. Officers ordered the man to drop the gun before shooting him. He was taken to the hospital where he was pronounced dead. What we don't know The reason behind the traffic stop was not given, according to FOX 2's Jessica Dupnack. Police also do not plan to release any video of the shooting. Dig deeper The suspect who was killed was identified as a 41-year-old man from Troy. According to a preliminary investigation, he did not fire a round before police shot. The Macomb County Sheriff's Office will take over the investigation. The Source Information from Shelby Township police was used while reporting this story.
Yahoo
4 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Toronto family 'devastated' after three kids killed in alleged drunk driving crash
TORONTO — The family of three Toronto children who were killed in an alleged drunk driving crash says they are 'utterly devastated' as they plan a funeral for the victims later this month. Ramone Lavina, 15, his younger brother Jace, 13, and their six-year-old sister Mya died in a collision on May 18 that Toronto police allege was caused by an impaired teen driver. The family's lawyer confirmed a publication ban on the children's identities was lifted on Thursday. Police have said the crash happened shortly after midnight at the eastbound off-ramp at Renforth Drive and Highway 401. They said a 19-year-old behind the wheel of a Dodge Caravan was allegedly speeding as he exited the highway, lost control, went over a raised median and slammed into a Chrysler Pacifica minivan that was stopped at a red light. Inside the minivan were a mother, her four children and a male acquaintance of the family, police said. Ramone and Jace were pronounced dead at the scene, while Mya was rushed to hospital but died a short time later. The mother, Jade Galve, her 10-year-old child Avery and the male driver were taken to hospital in stable condition. The Lavina-Galve family said they are reeling from the "unimaginable tragedy," and they thanked the first responders, hospital staff and community members who have provided support. "Although we remain utterly devastated, we are now in the process of planning the funeral for our three dear children, which is something no parent should ever have to endure," the family said in a statement through their lawyer. An online obituary says a funeral for the children is scheduled for June 14. Police said 19-year-old Ethan Lehouillier of Georgetown, Ont., was arrested at the scene of the crash and faces 12 charges, including three counts of impaired driving causing death and three counts of impaired driving causing bodily harm. The allegations have not been tested in court. Jim Cantos, a family friend, said in an interview after the crash that the Lavina siblings were "tight-knit." He said he's known the Lavina family for years — the children's father, Maverick Lavina, is an old friend of his sister's, and they went to high school together. "The kids were very respectful,' said Cantos, who coached Ramone at Toronto Future Phenom, a basketball training program in Scarborough. 'Whenever Ramone came to practice, his siblings were there as well, cheering him on. I believe they did everything together.' Cantos said the Lavinas are Filipino Canadian and he'd heard from many in the community who are shaken by the news. He said the family is well-liked in the community. 'The Filipino community is hit hard by this,' he said, adding it's been a tough time for Filipino Canadians, especially after the late April tragedy at a Filipino street festival in Vancouver, where 11 people were killed after an SUV rammed into a crowd. 'Filipinos, we move as a group… We are very tight family-wise and community-wise," said Cantos. 'No parent wants to go through something as tragic as burying their own kid. That's something that a kid does to their parents, not the other way around.' This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 2, 2025. Rianna Lim and Alex Nino Gheciu, The Canadian Press
Hamilton Spectator
4 days ago
- Hamilton Spectator
Toronto family ‘devastated' after three kids killed in alleged drunk driving crash
TORONTO - The family of three Toronto children who were killed in an alleged drunk driving crash says they are 'utterly devastated' as they plan a funeral for the victims later this month. Ramone Lavina, 15, his younger brother Jace, 13, and their six-year-old sister Mya died in a collision on May 18 that Toronto police allege was caused by an impaired teen driver. The family's lawyer confirmed a publication ban on the children's identities was lifted on Thursday. Police have said the crash happened shortly after midnight at the eastbound off-ramp at Renforth Drive and Highway 401. They said a 19-year-old behind the wheel of a Dodge Caravan was allegedly speeding as he exited the highway, lost control, went over a raised median and slammed into a Chrysler Pacifica minivan that was stopped at a red light. Inside the minivan were a mother, her four children and a male acquaintance of the family, police said. Ramone and Jace were pronounced dead at the scene, while Mya was rushed to hospital but died a short time later. The mother, Jade Galve, her 10-year-old child Avery and the male driver were taken to hospital in stable condition. The Lavina-Galve family said they are reeling from the 'unimaginable tragedy,' and they thanked the first responders, hospital staff and community members who have provided support. 'Although we remain utterly devastated, we are now in the process of planning the funeral for our three dear children, which is something no parent should ever have to endure,' the family said in a statement through their lawyer. An online obituary says a funeral for the children is scheduled for June 14. Police said 19-year-old Ethan Lehouillier of Georgetown, Ont., was arrested at the scene of the crash and faces 12 charges, including three counts of impaired driving causing death and three counts of impaired driving causing bodily harm. The allegations have not been tested in court. Jim Cantos, a family friend, said in an interview after the crash that the Lavina siblings were 'tight-knit.' He said he's known the Lavina family for years — the children's father, Maverick Lavina, is an old friend of his sister's, and they went to high school together. 'The kids were very respectful,' said Cantos, who coached Ramone at Toronto Future Phenom, a basketball training program in Scarborough. 'Whenever Ramone came to practice, his siblings were there as well, cheering him on. I believe they did everything together.' Cantos said the Lavinas are Filipino Canadian and he'd heard from many in the community who are shaken by the news. He said the family is well-liked in the community. 'The Filipino community is hit hard by this,' he said, adding it's been a tough time for Filipino Canadians, especially after the late April tragedy at a Filipino street festival in Vancouver, where 11 people were killed after an SUV rammed into a crowd. 'Filipinos, we move as a group… We are very tight family-wise and community-wise,' said Cantos. 'No parent wants to go through something as tragic as burying their own kid. That's something that a kid does to their parents, not the other way around.' This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 2, 2025. Error! Sorry, there was an error processing your request. There was a problem with the recaptcha. Please try again. You may unsubscribe at any time. By signing up, you agree to our terms of use and privacy policy . This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google privacy policy and terms of service apply. Want more of the latest from us? Sign up for more at our newsletter page .
