A 40-year-old woman charged following a motor vehicle crash in Mountain View County more than two years ago that killed two men and seriously injured another woman has been handed a four-year prison sentence.
Jennifer Dawn Black pleaded guilty on Oct. 2 to two counts of dangerous driving causing death and one count of dangerous driving causing bodily harm.
Black, a Sundre resident, was sentenced by Justice Barbara Romaine in Calgary on Jan. 30.
The crash occurred about 10 kilometres north of Sundre on Highway 22 at Twp. Rd. 340 on April 5, 2015.
Sundre residents Perry Vollmer, 57, and Brian Schrader, 65, died in the back seat of the truck.
A female passenger, Vivian Nielsen, was thrown from the vehicle and suffered chest and other injuries.
Black was found unconscious still buckled into the driver's seat. She was later flown to Foothills Medical Centre where she remained for two months with head and other injuries.
According to an agreed statement of facts, Black was driving a Dodge Ram 1500 four-door pickup truck when she got into an argument with Vollmer.
"The accused was angry and argued with Vollmer about which route to take," the statement reads.
"Vollmer was seated towards the driver's side of the back seat. The accused turned around and grabbed Vollmer's head with both hands as they argued.
"The accused was facing backwards when the vehicle left the road, with no hands on the steering wheel. The accused hit the approach at the intersection, the truck flew over the fence and rolled end over end."
Data later downloaded from the vehicle indicated it was travelling at 160 kilometres an hour at the time it left the roadway.
Three hours after the crash blood samples were taken from Black.
"The forensic toxicologist determined that at the time of the collision, approximately 10 p.m., the accused's blood alcohol content would have been between 189 and 240 mg per cent."
Black was initially charged with 12 Criminal Code counts: six counts of alcohol impaired-related offences causing death/injury, three counts of dangerous driving causing death/injury and three counts of criminal negligence causing death/injury.
The four-year sentenced handed to Black was a fitting end to the case, says Lisa Schrader, a niece of victim Brian Schrader.
"I'm pleased it is finished and now we can start moving on with the healing process," she said. "It definitely affected a lot of people in different ways.
"When she plead guilty it was a relief that we didn't have to go through the trial and all that. Now we can all start moving on, even her."
Black was also given a five-year driving suspension.
"I'm pleased it is finished and now we can start moving on with the healing process."
