In a courtroom packed with the victims' families, a 26-year-old Surrey man who pleaded guilty to two counts of dangerous driving causing death has been sentenced to 20 months in prison, less than the 22 to 24 month recommendation from Crown counsel.
Defence recommended a sentence of 12 to 15 months for Nicolas Karvouniaris, who was driving his Jeep more than three times the speed limit when he crossed the centre line on 88th Avenue in Surrey in Nov. 4th, 2018. That's when he hit a Ford Escape head on.
The driver of that vehicle, 50-year-old maternity nurse Sarah Dhillon, was killed instantly. Nineteen-year-old student Paige Nagata died from her injuries in hospital. Two other passengers, including Dhillon’s 17-year-old son, have serious, life-altering injuries.
Karvouniaris had an extensive driving record including seven speeding convictions, two 24-hour driving prohibitions, two two-month driving prohibitions and tickets for using an electronic device while driving and driving while prohibited. He expressed his remorse to the victim's families in court, and says he's getting counselling to deal with the issues that caused him to drive recklessly.
The court heard victim impact statements in August, where Nagata's mother read a letter she'd written to her daughter, describing the young woman as smart and hard-working.
In her emotional and tearful statement, she also praised Nagata's sense of humour.
"She was so smart and she could have done anything she wanted to. It’s a shame," said Brooke Nagata, her sister.
"You're faced with a lot of different emotions, whether to feel angry or sad. You try and find a way to tell a bunch of people you don’t know how you feel," said the victim's older sister a short time after giving her victim impact statement.
Dhillon's family hopes their daughter’s case will set precedent for future reckless driving cases.
"When are we going to stop this carnage on the roads with motor vehicle accidents and crashes?" asked Julie Demmitt, Sarah Dhillon's mother. "They're not really accidents, they're criminal acts when people drive above the speed limit."
