Suspending driver's licence for medical reasons takes 2 months, inquest hears

A five-person jury in Sudbury will continue to hear testimony today in a coroner's inquest into a fatal collision more than two years ago.

Walter Blight, 72, of Elliot Lake was killed July 16, 2015 when his southbound vehicle struck a northbound tractor traileron Highway 69, not far from Highway 637, nearKillarney.

Jurors at theinquest heardevidence from five witnesses Monday, most providing testimony as to whether Blight should have been behind the wheel that day.

Two different police constables testifiedthey had pulled Blight overthinking he was an impaired driver.

Both testified the vehicle was observed weaving all over the road.

Constable Laura Hicks with ThessalonOPP testifiedshe and her partner stopped Blight around 10:00 p.m. on July 15 near Blind River, Ont.

She says Blight told her he was traveling from Elliot Laketo Midland to visit his son Darin.

Hicks says she and her partner tried to negotiate with the man. She testified she wrote him up a ticket for careless driving under the Highway Traffic Act, which carries a $490 fine.

Hicks testified she told Blight she would rip up the ticket if he would head back to Elliot Lake that night. The officer saysBlight just held out his hand to take the ticket.

"I will remember that gentleman's name for the rest of my life," Hicks testified about Blight and their interaction.

MTOdatabase showed valid driver's license

Blight made it on to Sudbury that evening, butwas pulled over by Greater Sudbury Police on St Anne's Road.

Constable Lindsay Rhodes testified at the coroner's inquest that she and her partner pulled him over around 12:40 a.m. July 16, 2015. He had told her he had gotten turned around while following a tractor trailer and ended up downtown.

Rhodes testified that she and her partner tried everything to get Blight to remain in Sudbury for the evening andavoid being on the roads. She says the elderly man seemed determined to get to Midland.

Rhodes says Blight even showed them the careless driving ticket he had been given hours before near Blind River. Unfortunately the infraction hadn't been processed and wasn't in the system.

Rhodes testified the she checked the MTO'sdatabase. Blight hada valid driver's licence.

In both cases, the officerstestified they wanted to be able to take his license away or impound his vehicle, but they didn'thave the authority to do this simply based onmedical reasons.

Another OPP constable from Elliot Lake testified during the coroner's inquest about his interactions with Blight just two days before the fatal collision.

In all cases, when police checked the Ministry of Transportation database Blight was listed as avalid driver in Ontario.

Investigating coroner testifies

The final witness to testify at the coroner's inquest Monday was Dr Laura Piccinin,the coroner who investigated Blight's death. She will continue her testimony today.

Piccininsays she performed both an external and internal post-mortem on the victim of the fatal collision.

The doctor testified she determined the cause of death was trauma caused by multiple injuries sustained in the crash.

"There was no clear medical evidence to answer what happened," she testified.

In her role as an emergency room doctor,Piccininsays she fillsout at least two licence review forms per year for patients who shouldn't be driving.

The forms list the 17 most commonly reported conditions, anda section marked 'other' with space for physicians to provide further details. The licence review form for policeis different from the one provided for physicians.

Forms faxed to MTO

Piccininsays when she looked at Blight's medical conditions prior to the fatal collision she realized there wasn't anything on the list to describe his issues.

The doctor testified the forms are faxed to the MTO, and in some cases Piccininsays she would mail to the ministry any extra dictation she hadmade for specific patients.

Piccinintestified she usually gets a letter back from the Ministry after 7 to 8 weeks confirming they've received the form.

She added there is no immediate way for a doctor or a police officer to suspend someone's license for medical reasons.

When asked if she knew of an online form or aphone number to contact the MTOmore quickly, Piccininsaid she was unaware of any way to do that.

The coroner's inquest will determine if changes need to be made to prevent similar deaths in the future.

Any recommendations must be implemented within 6 months of the jury's decision.