Nearly eight months after the hit-and-run that killed her only daughter, a mother from the South Shore of Montreal is unable to grieve and deplores the lack of resources to help her through this tragedy.
“When my daughter’s life was ripped from her, mine ended too. Will I ever have some semblance of a normal life? I am in the unknown. I can’t go on with my life as if nothing had happened. I miss her so much,” breathes Éliane Dell, in a voice broken by sobs.
His 25-year-old daughter Clarissa St-Armand Dell was fatally struck on June 24 as she crossed the intersection of Rome Boulevard and Lautrec Street in Brossard, around 4:20 a.m.
Thierry Laforce / QMI Agency
The driver immediately fled, leaving several horrified witnesses and the body of the young woman behind him.
“He left it in the street like common trash. I have a lot of sadness inside me, but also a lot of incomprehension,” says the grieving mother.
After just under two weeks of investigation, a man was handcuffed in connection with this case. José Luis Raymond has pleaded not guilty to the charges brought against him, namely failing to stop following a fatal accident and dangerous driving causing death. Arrested on July 7, the suspect was released on conditions pending trial.
Difficult mourning
“Clarissa, it was my whole life. She was my other half, my family and my best friend. We were together every day. Losing her overnight, without being able to talk to her and touch her, is unbearable,” laments Eliane Dell.
Since her daughter’s death, she has knocked on every door for help. The results are far from worthy of her sentence, she believes. She deplores the lack of resources for bereaved parents who must learn to live without their child.
Thierry Laforce / QMI Agency
“I’m not just grieving my daughter, but also being called mum or becoming a grandmother. For a mother, it’s the most beautiful thing in the world to be called mom. Me, it will never happen again”, cries the mother of Clarissa.
Tribute
Eliane Dell, who has not entered her daughter’s room since her death, goes to the scene of the tragedy every day to lay flowers there. Until recently, a cross had been planted at the intersection. The City, however, replaced it on Friday with a commemorative plaque in honor of Clarissa.
“They also planted a tree to replace the one that was there before the incident,” said Ms. Dell, grateful to have a place where she can gather.