Close X
Saturday, November 16, 2024
ADVT 
National

'Linda O'Leary Was Not Impaired' During Fatal Boat Crash, Says Defence Lawyer

Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 28 Nov, 2019 09:08 PM

    A lawyer for Linda O'Leary, the wife of celebrity businessman Kevin O'Leary, says his client was not impaired when she got involved in a boat crash on an Ontario lake that left two people dead.

     

    Recently unsealed court documents allege Linda O'Leary had alcohol on her breath the morning after the boat she was driving collided with another vessel around 11:30 p.m. on Aug. 24. on Lake Joseph.

     

    Search warrant documents filed by Ontario Provincial Police say Linda O'Leary told police she had consumed alcohol after the crash, but before the breath test was administered on the morning of Aug. 25.

     

    Linda O'Leary's lawyer, Brian Greenspan, says in a statement that the "tragic accident had nothing to do with alcohol."

     

    Two people were killed and three others were injured in the collision.

     

    Linda O'Leary faces one charge of careless operation of a vessel under the Canada Shipping Act, while the operator of the other boat, Richard Ruh, of Orchard Park, N.Y., faces one charge of failing to exhibit a navigation light while underway.

     

    None of the allegations have been proven in court.

    "Linda O'Leary was not impaired; she is a highly experienced boater who was proceeding cautiously with due care and attention," Greenspan said in a statement to The Canadian Press.

     

    "She collided with a totally unlit boat on a moonless night which was invisible to any prudent operator. No one could have avoided the collision."

     

    The court documents also say that security camera footage from nearby cottages shows the other boat, which was adrift without its engine on and carried 12 people who were out to look at stars, did not have its navigational lights on.

     

    OPP officers filed the search warrants with court in Parry Sound, Ont., as they sought to seize and investigate O'Leary's boat and seize a digital video recorder from his cottage.

     

    Det. Ronald Marshall wrote in the search warrant that another officer went to the O'Learys' cottage shortly after the crash, following a 911 call that the couple had been involved in a boating accident and were injured.

     

    "(Linda) O'Leary registered an alert and was given a three-day driving suspension," Marshall wrote in the warrant documents.

     

    "O'Leary claimed that she had consumed alcohol following the collision and after returning home."

     

    Gary Poltash, 64, from Florida died at the scene, while Suzana Brito, 48, from Uxbridge, Ont., died in hospital a few days later.

     

    MORE National ARTICLES

    New Westminster Police Looking For Missing 27-Year-Old Scott Kennedy-Dumont

    The New Westminster Police Department is seeking public assistance in the search for 27 year old missing person Scott Kennedy-Dumont.

    New Westminster Police Looking For Missing 27-Year-Old Scott Kennedy-Dumont

    RCMP Seek Assistance In Locating Missing Coquitlam Man Jong Park

    The Coquitlam RCMP is asking for your help in the search for a missing person. Jong Park was last seen on 2nd of October, 2019 at 10:30 a.m. and was reported missing to police on 3rd October, 2019.

    RCMP Seek Assistance In Locating Missing Coquitlam Man Jong Park

    RCMP Search For 2 Young Sisters Missing In Surrey

    Surrey RCMP are asking for help locating two young sisters who have not been seen since Thursday morning.

    RCMP Search For 2 Young Sisters Missing In Surrey

    Gurpreet Multani, Jaskaran Johal Arrested, Handgun Seized Following Collision In Surrey

    Both men are known to police, have links to the Brothers Keepers crime group and have been remanded in custody while the investigation continues.    

    Gurpreet Multani, Jaskaran Johal Arrested, Handgun Seized Following Collision In Surrey

    TELUS Joins South Asian Canadian Fashion Designer Nina Kharey Founded Womenswear Brand NONIE For #EndBullying Campaign

    Telus has collaborated with Nina Kharey (Brand NONIE) - A south asian Canadian fashion designer to design an Endbullying t-shirt for Telus and launched it during the New York Fashion Week. 

    TELUS Joins South Asian Canadian Fashion Designer Nina Kharey Founded Womenswear Brand NONIE For #EndBullying Campaign

    Jury In Fitness Hearing For Murder Suspect To Hear From Psychiatrist

    FREDERICTON - The hearing to determine if Matthew Raymond is fit to stand trial on four counts of first-degree murder continues today in Fredericton.    

    Jury In Fitness Hearing For Murder Suspect To Hear From Psychiatrist