P.E.I. man facing impaired driving charges in fatal New Year's Day crash
James B. Andrew of Stanley Bridge charged in crash in which his partner was killed
A 74-year-old man from Stanley Bridge is facing charges of impaired driving causing death in connection with a fatal crash that took place on New Year's Day in Clinton, P.E.I.
James B. Andrew, who was 73 at the time of the crash, has been charged under the Criminal Code of Canada with two counts: one for operating a vehicle while impaired by alcohol, and a second for having a blood alcohol concentration at or above 80 milligrams per 100 millilitres of blood within two hours of driving, both charges alleging he caused the death of his passenger.
He is scheduled to make his first court appearance in June in provincial court in Charlottetown.
The charges stem from a single-vehicle collision that happened on the afternoon of Jan. 1.
First responders were called to Route 6 in Clinton around 4:30 p.m., where they found an SUV that had gone off the road and into a ditch.
Police said Andrew was behind the wheel, and a 70-year-old woman was in the passenger seat. She died from her injuries at the scene. According to her obituary, the victim was Andrew's partner.
Andrew was arrested at the scene for impaired driving and taken to hospital with serious injuries.
He has no prior criminal record and is not in custody.
Cpl. Gavin Moore, the media relations officer for the P.E.I. RCMP, said it's not unusual in cases like these for the investigation to take some time before any charges are laid.
"In cases similar to this, there are often professional reports that are required by traffic reconstructionists, there's often analysis of lab results and other information that has to be examined, all of which takes time," Moore said.
"We can't proceed until all of the pieces of evidence that we need for a particular case have been received."
With files from Nicola MacLeod