FORT MCMURRAY, Alta. — An expert has told the trial of a Mountie charged in the death of a man who was struck by two vehicles on a northern Alberta highway that she isn’t sure which collision caused the victim’s internal injuries.
Const. Michelle Phillips has pleaded not guilty to dangerous driving causing death and dangerous driving causing bodily harm in the 2016 death of 41-year-old Tracy Janvier.
Phillips was responding to a report of a pedestrian collision on Highway 881 south of Anzac, Alta.
Court has heard that a couple driving in a pickup truck hit Janvier in the dark of night on the remote highway.
Then Phillips struck struck the man while responding to the call.
Chief Medical Examiner Dr. Elizabeth Brooks-Lim testified that she couldn’t determine which collision caused the man’s internal injuries.
Cause of death was significant trauma and blood loss from impact with a motor vehicle.
Cpl. Mark Podesky, an RCMP collision reconstruction expert, told court that Janvier came into contact with the pickup truck’s headlight, windshield, and side mirror.
He testified that Janvier rolled over the roof of the truck and then fell on the pavement.
Podesky said the collision was unavoidable because Janvier was walking in the middle of the highway in the dark. (Rogers Radio)