OPP officer to spend two years in prison following fatal acc

[Thomas]

Sergeant Darryl Storey was driving a police vehicle that collided with a car driven by 18 year old Jasmine Veneruzzo in 2008

Brenda Veneruzzo says she's satisfied with the sentence handed down to the man who was found responsible for her daughter's death.

Jasmine Veneruzzo, 18, was killed instantly when OPP Sergeant Darryl Storey's police cruiser collided with her vehicle in 2008.

Jasmine Veneruzzo was killed in a car collision Dec. 3, 2008 Everest Funeral Home
Her mother asked the court today for the “maximum sentence” for Storey, who was ordered to serve two years in prison. Veneruzzo praised the judge for the message the sentence sends.

“Someone will see the sentence and what has happened to this gentleman and they will think twice about speeding to save the next life,” she said.

In Superior Court Friday, the crown and defence submitted a joint submission and, around 1:30 p.m., Justice Casimir Herold rendered his decision.

Three benches full of Veneruzzo family and friends awaited the officer’s sentence.

Storey committed one of the most serious crimes in the criminal code, Herold said, tragically ending a promising life in an instant.

While criminal law does not restore a life, criminal law can impose a sentence appropriate to the circumstances, the judge added.

“Storey miserably and tragically failed to serve and protect,” Herold continued.

The judge considered Storey's post traumatic stress disorder as a mitigating factor in sentencing. He said Veneruzzo’s death was not in vain if it helped to push the issue of PTSD in police officers to the forefront.

Storey was given a two-year sentence, which the judge recommended be served in the minimum security Beaver Creek prison in Gravenhurst.

Storey handed the court his licence as he was escorted by police officers from the room.

Herold praised the Veneruzzo family for their composure as they sat quietly while the sentence was rendered.

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/thunder-b ... rdict.html