TORONTO: A court in Ontario, Canada, has convicted Punjabi-origin truck driver Gursharan Singh of dangerous driving causing death following a fatal road accident in the province’s northern region.
In his verdict, Justice F. Bruce Fitzpatrick of the Ontario Superior Court of Justice in Thunder Bay said Singh’s excessive speed and negligence were the primary causes of the crash.
The accident occurred one morning in January 2023 on Highway 17, near the Steel River Bridge, around 27 km east of Terrace Bay.
At the time, 24-year-old Singh was driving a loaded Freightliner truck westbound. Travelling in the opposite direction was 64-year-old Arthur Meenan, who was driving a Ford Expedition with his wife.
According to court records and the investigation, the temperature that day was minus 21 degrees Celsius and the road was wet. Testimony from police officers and data retrieved from the truck’s onboard computer showed that Singh was driving downhill at 110 kmph.
The speed limit on that stretch was 90 kmph, while the recommended warning speed was 80 kmph.
As the truck crossed the bridge, it reportedly lost balance and the trailer jackknifed, causing the vehicle to cross the centre line and collide head-on with Meenan’s SUV.
The impact severely damaged the SUV. Meenan suffered fatal injuries, while his wife sustained minor injuries. Footage from the truck’s dashboard camera also helped establish how the accident occurred.
