Marilyn Cross, the mother of the late Broncos assistant coach Mark Cross, looked at semi-truck driver Jaskirat Singh Sidhu on Monday and said she sees a man not much older than her 27-year-old son Mark had been.
“Mr. Sidhu, I grieve for you as well,” Cross said. “I don't hate you.”
Sidhu is being sentenced this week in a Melfort, Sask., courtroom on 16 counts of dangerous driving causing death and 13 counts of dangerous driving causing bodily harm in relation to the April 6, 2018 Humboldt Broncos bus crash.
On Monday afternoon, dozens of victim impact statements detailed the pain, suffering and trauma caused by the collision of the truck Sidhu was driving and the Broncos team bus that day in April.
Cross said she was relieved Sidhu pleaded guilty and said she admired his courage to do so.
“In your future, I hope you make every effort to live a productive life doing good wherever you go. Make the world a better place, just like our son Mark did,” Cross said, as Sidhu met her gaze and used a tissue to wipe the tears from his face.
The statements opened with the family of Logan Boulet, whose mother Bernadine told the court she is constantly surrounded by little reminders of her late son.
““It’s the little things that I don’t expect to stop me in my tracks, but they do.”
“I am constantly surrounded by reminders of my funny, cheesy, kind son,” Bernadine said as she cried.
Boulet’s father, Toby, said that he just wants to hold his son.
“I ache everywhere. I just want Logan to come home,” he said.
Toby Boulet adressed Sidhu, and said he does not believe he got out of bed that morning to cause the crash.
“I do not believe Mr. Sidhu is an inherently evil person that feels no remorse. I believe he feels tremendous remorse.”
“I believe that Mr. Sidhu wishes with all the fibres of his being that this tragedy would never have happened. I want the same, but Mr. Sidhu and I know that cannot happen.”
Sidhu sat in court all day with seven supporters behind him, who cried through some of the statements.
Robin Lukan, the mother of St. Albert Raiders alumnus Conner Lukan, presented to the court, detailing a trip out to Saskatchewan to watch her son play hockey only days earlier. She said before she left, she gave him one last hug.
“I wished I had held Conner and never let him go,” his mother said. “I feel like I am going through the motions of life without living.”
Robin said she does not forgive Sidhu and wants the driver to know who Conner is and how much he is missed.
“I want you to understand the pain you have caused,” she said.
Alan Wack, a St. Albert resident, read a statement on behalf of the Wack family and recalled the amazing young man his son, Stephen Wack, was.
He described his son, who was born in St. Albert, as an exceptional young man who was “naturally good at everything he tried.”
Melissa Doerksen presented a statement about her father, Humboldt bus driver Glen Doerksen, who loved driving hockey teams. Melissa Doerksen said he loved watching their games and getting to share stories.
“As long as it involved people, he loved to be there.”
Melissa told the court that it was hard when Glen missed her brother’s wedding in the summer and that she misses the small moments with him.
“We’re working toward finding understanding and forgiveness, because that’s what my dad would have wanted,” she said.
Other families submitted impact statement describing the depression, anxiety and gaping holes in their hearts left by the crash.
The parents of Evan Thomas shared their statement as a letter to their late son.
“Everywhere we go, we miss you,” father Scott Thomas said.
Sidhu cried through much of the testimony, wiping his tears away with tissue and looking toward the victims when he was addressed.
Families who live in the area detailed the stress and anxiety caused by driving past the corner where the accident took place. Nick Shumlanski’s sister, Nancy, detailed the trauma her brother and family suffered from the accident.
The family was one of the first on the scene and Nancy said they were witness to things they shouldn't have to see in a lifetime. The family home is situated a quarter-mile away from the accident site and they suffer mentally and emotionally every time they pass by the corner.
Other families, like the Thomas family, have decided to move because they can't bear to be in their home without their son any longer.
Darlene Hinz, the mother of Brody Hinz who served as the team statistician, said she was "angry, frustrated, confused and crying lots." The distraught mother could not even complete writing her victim impact statement because writing it was too hard.
Parents of those who survived the crash detailed the anxiety, stress and depression that has plagued their sons since the incident.
Tom Straschnitzki, the father of Ryan Straschnitzki, who was paralyzed from the chest down from the accident, told the court their family had been living in a hotel since last summer, as their house was being renovated and modified so Ryan can get around.
Tom Straschnitzki had harsh words for Sidhu.
“Why didn’t you stop? You didn't even slow down,” his statement read.
“All you had to do was stop.”
Layne Matechuk’s father, Kevin, shared with the court how their life has changed for the worse and how his son suffered a traumatic brain injury in the collision. Kevin said Layne is in therapy every day and the depression seems to be eating their family up.
The sentencing is slated to take between three and five days with 65 statements to be read out loud and 75 submitted in total.
Many of the statements called for changes to the trucking industry.
The Broncos bus crash claimed the lives of 16 people and injured 13 others. Four young men with ties to St. Albert died in the crash: Conner Lukan, Stephen Wack, Jaxon Joseph and Logan Hunter.
Joseph’s family is in Melfort and has submitted 12 victim impact statements that will be read later this week.
