Cyclist struck to death: guilty of driving too tired

A motorist who fatally hit a cyclist after getting behind the wheel even though she was “so tired” has just been found guilty, due to her negligence which proved fatal.

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“The signs were numerous, she knew so much that she was tired that she went to get a coffee. And she chose to take her car. It was easily avoidable,” commented Judge Dennis Galiatsatos this Thursday at the Montreal courthouse, in a case that we rarely see, namely dangerous driving caused by fatigue.

Sitting a few feet from the judge, Christine Pryde listened attentively as the judge recounted his crimes committed on May 18, 2021. That day, the 32-year-old accused was traveling in the west of the island, in order to go to a Tim Hortons to buy an iced cappuccino.

Fatigue while driving

However, she had slept little and had also taken a small tablet of Ativan, a medication that can cause drowsiness. Except that once in the Senneville area, Pryde missed a curve, heading towards a cycle path.

Irène Dehem, a 50-year-old mother who was cycling at the time, was hit head-on.

“The car ended up in a small ditch,” said Kathleen Crawford, a passerby who witnessed the tragedy. I went to see [la cycliste] to check her pulse… I think she was no longer alive. At the request of the 911 dispatcher, I attempted resuscitation measures.”

The woman then went to see if Pryde needed help. The accused then told him that she was “so tired”, and then said essentially the same thing to a police officer who arrived on the scene.

“She told me that she was at work, that she was going to Tim Hortons to get an iced coffee in order to wake up, because she had slept badly,” testified agent Sylvain Carrier.

Road safety

In a voluminous 87-page decision, the judge concluded, taking into account all the factors, that even if Pryde had never intended to kill anyone, she must be found guilty of dangerous driving, driving with impairment causing death, as well as fatal criminal negligence.

“The accused, having taken a medication that she knew caused drowsiness, aware that she was sleep deprived, hungry, in a state of fatigue, consciously chose to drive several kilometers to buy a coffee” , said the judge.

But for the victim’s partner, Pryde’s guilt does not change the fact that “Irene will never come back.”

“I have no hard feelings [envers Pryde]I didn’t have any negative feelings, like hoping that she will be punished, explained Dominic Lemelin. For me, this trial was a question of principle. It was a complex case, there was a combination of factors, and what was proven was that it was inappropriate to drive.”

M’s son^me Dehem, Friedrich Dehem-Lemelin, for his part called for improving the safety of all those who travel by active transport, such as cycling, recalling that “if there had been a physical barrier between motorists and cyclists », his mother would not have died.

Pryde will return to court in the coming months for sentencing arguments.

Fatigue while driving

√ Caused more than one in five in accidents causing injury or death

√ A tired driver tends to overestimate his level of alertness

√ A long period of wakefulness has similar effects to alcohol

√ 17 hours of wakefulness equals a blood alcohol level of 0.05

√ Fatigue is a risk even on a short journey

√ The only way to avoid fatigue is to stop and rest

Source: Quebec Automobile Insurance Company