The sentencing of a Chatham-Kent man who pleaded guilty to five charges in a fatal crash in Leamington that killed two women could serve as a benchmark for future cases.
Jacob Fehr, 24, pled guilty to two counts of impaired driving causing death, two counts of dangerous driving causing death, and one count of driving while prohibited.
The crash on March 18, 2022, involved three vehicles.
That morning, Fehr was driving his pickup truck in the eastbound lane of County Road 34 when he veered into the westbound lane. The pickup truck sideswiped an oncoming van when that driver moved onto the shoulder of the road. The pickup truck continued in the westbound lane when it crashed head-on into a Chevy Cruze.
Thirty-year-old Jacqueline Steeman was driving the car while her mother, Carrie 50-year-old , was in the passenger seat. Both women died in the crash.
The Ontario Provincial Police found bottles of beer in Fehr's vehicle, and paramedics noted he smelled of alcohol. Later at the hospital, he told paramedics he had been drinking at a friend's house.
Samples of his blood showed he was almost three times over the legal limit at the time of the collision.
The conviction is Fehr's third.
The judge accepted the crown and defence attorneys' sentencing recommendation of nine years minus the 117 days he spent in custody. Fehr is prohibited from driving for 20 years, and the Ministry of Transportation suspended his licence for life, although he can apply to reduce the suspension after ten years.
Crown Iain Skelton said the sentence is the highest given in Windsor-Essex, although similar sentences have been handed down elsewhere in Ontario.
Skelton said Fehr addressed the court during Tuesday's hearing, taking full responsibility for his actions. Fehr is also in counselling for his addiction to alcohol and drugs.
