Court Hears Details in Fatal Crash That Killed Young Calgary Girl
The driver who struck a vehicle on Macleod Trail, killing nine-year-old Victoria Desjardin, has a documented history of severe childhood trauma.
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The man who ran a red light at Macleod Trail and Southland Drive on Boxing Day 2024, killing nine-year-old Victoria Desjardin, experienced severe childhood trauma that compromised his brain development, a psychological report heard Friday showed.
Duane Nepoose, 31, pleaded guilty years ago to multiple charges stemming from a crime spree that ended in the fatal collision. A trauma expert told the court that Nepoose's upbringing included physical and sexual abuse, neglect, and intergenerational trauma from both parents' residential school experience.
"His brain has been compromised," Kate Webb-Harris, who prepared the report, told Nepoose's defence lawyer. On a 10-point scale measuring childhood trauma impact on brain development, she rated Nepoose a 10. "They're in survival mode," she said. "I call it caveman brain."
Police helicopter footage played in court showed Nepoose speeding through southern Calgary at speeds up to 170 km/h, running red lights on Macleod Trail at 109th and 99th avenues before striking the silver Pontiac Vibe driven by Victoria's mother, Amanda Reitmeier. The crash also badly injured Victoria's older sister and another motorist.
After submissions from Crown and defence, Nepoose addressed the court. "I want to say that I'm sorry to the family, sorry for taking away moments that should have been," he said. Justice Indra Maharaj will hand down sentencing at a later date.