By Paul Pedro, July 7, 2022 at 7:50 p.m.
A Chatham woman who pleaded guilty to killing an elderly Sarnia couple in a head-on accident will spend the next five years behind bars.
Sarah Suitor, 41, pleaded guilty to two counts of drug-impaired driving that resulted in her death in April and was sentenced to five years in prison in a Chatham courtroom Thursday afternoon after ‘a joint presentation of the prosecution and the defense.
Suitor will also be banned from driving for five years after his conviction and will have to attend drug and alcohol counseling and mental health services while in prison. Suitor was removed from other charges of dangerous driving to cause death and possession of fentanyl. The judge noted that he had a limited criminal record with a 10-year breach and spared the court and the family of the elderly an emotional trial.
The claimant will not get the benefit of the time already served.
The court learned that she has struggled with substance abuse since her grandfather’s death and that her mother died when she was 14 years old. Suitor also did not know his biological father and had few great relationships, according to his lawyer Frank Retar.
The victims’ impact statements were not read aloud in the courts.
Challenge hopes the best days are ahead if you get the help you need for your addiction.
Suitor has a 22-year-old daughter and is committed to getting married.
Crown assistant James Boonstra said impaired driving is a fact that happens too often and should be stopped.
The collision took place on Highway 40 near Wallaceburg 28 months ago. Rose Hills, 87, and her husband William Hills, 88, both of Sarnia, died from their injuries. Mrs. Hills died at the hospital from her injuries while her husband was pronounced dead at the scene.
Suitor received minor injuries and was treated and discharged from the hospital.