The defence team for a woman accused of driving drunk and crashing into an Montreal city bus is trying to have the physical evidence in the case thrown out.
Stacey Snider was driving on August 14, 2012 when she collided with a bus in an impact so severe the bus was knocked on its side.
The bus driver, 49-year-old Sylvain Ferland, was not wearing his seatbelt and died when he was ejected from his seat and the bus rolled on top of him. Passenger Janet Snider, the driver's mother, also died in the collision.
However Snider was never charged with the two deaths because investigators could never determine who caused the accident. Instead Snider was charged with drunk driving.
And now Snider's lawyers are fighting that charge, arguing that police violated her rights when they established her drunken state.
Snider was unconscious when taken to hospital and police officers were present when a medical professional looking at her bloodwork realized she was drunk.
Upon hearing that declaration police sought and obtained a warrant to seize the evidence.
Snider's lawyer is arguing that is a violation of Snider's right to privacy, since medical professionals are not allowed to discuss their work with anyone else.
A decision regarding the validity of the evidence will be made on May 4.
Stephany Ezard, a bus passenger told CTV Montreal that the injuries she suffered in the crash were severe.
“I was cut open from the bridge of my nose to the side of my temple,” she said. “From what I found out, you could actually see my skull.”
Nonetheless she was philosophical about Snider’s legal gambit. “Our Canadian law is the law and sometimes it works for us, sometimes we have to take what it gives us. We don’t have to be happy about it.”
