Canada was shocked last April when 16 people were killed and 13 others were injured in a major bus crash. The Humboldt Broncos hockey team had been on their way to a playoff game when their bus crashed into a semi-trailer truck in Saskatchewan.
Jaskirat Singh Sidhu, the driver of the semi-trailer, was charged with 16 counts of dangerous driving causing death and 13 counts of dangerous driving causing bodily harm. Sidhu had failed to stop at a flashing stop sign, which resulted in the crash.
The case had only just begun in court when Sidhu pled guilty to all counts. Toronto criminal lawyer Ed Prutschi says the move was surprising considering the case had just begun and it was a routine court day when the plea came in. Prutschi says Sidhu will likely get many years behind bars but his guilty plea will give him some leniency.
Many speculated that there could have been substance abuse involved but Prutschi explains that there were never any allegations of impaired driving. This case was about bad driving, which can be just as bad as impaired driving. The father of one of the boys who passed in the accident said he is happy that the case is finally over and that Sidhu owned up to his mistakes.
