British Columbia

Speedboat driver responsible for fatal Shuswap crash to be sentenced today

It has been almost six years since a speedboat slammed into the back of a houseboat on Shuswap Lake, killing houseboat driver Ken Brown and injuring eight others.

Leon Reinbrecht crashed his speedboat into a houseboat on Canada Day 2010, killing one and injuring others

A speedboat is seen inside of a houseboat at a storage area on Shuswap Lake, B.C., on Sunday, July 4, 2010. The speed boat crashed into the houseboat, killing one and injuring eight others. (Daniel Hayduk/The Canadian Press)

It has been almost six years since a speedboat slammed into the back of a houseboat on Shuswap Lake, killing  houseboat driver Ken Brown and injuring eight others.

Leon Reinbrecht was found guilty on two counts in October of 2015 in connection to 2010 Shuswap Lake boat crash that killed one and injured eight others. (Kent Simmonds/CFJC Today)

Today, the man at the helm of the smaller vessel, Leon Reinbrecht, expects to be sentenced in Kamloops on charges of criminal negligence causing death and criminal negligence causing bodily harm.

Crown and defence lawyers offered sentencing submissions yesterday, with the Crown calling for two to three-and-a-half years behind bars and the defence suggesting a two-year term is appropriate.

During the trial, the court was told Reinbrecht was speeding at up to 64 kilometres per hour while cutting donuts and zigzagging before the late-night crash that killed Brown in July 2010.

The speedboat came to a stop inside the houseboat cabin.