Renous man admits to fault in deadly accident
Roderick Gerard Hallihan, 53, had faced charges under Criminal Code and Motor Vehicle Act for September 2022 collision that claimed life of Mackenzie “Mack” Green
A Renous man who had been set to stand trial next summer for illegal driving conduct that led to a fatal accident has opted instead to admit an offence, but he won’t be facing criminal sanctions.
Roderick Gerard Hallihan, 53, of Route 108 in Renous, faced an indictable criminal charge of dangerous driving causing the death of Mackenize “Mack” Green, stemming from a motor-vehicle collision in Youngs Cove on Sept. 17, 2022.
He was also charged with a related offence under the provincial Motor Vehicle Act of driving without due care and attention.
He previously elected to be tried in provincial court and pleaded not guilty to both charges, and earlier this month, his trial on those counts was scheduled for Aug. 9.
However, Hallihan was back in Fredericton provincial court Friday with defence lawyer Sabrina Winters, who noted the case had been resolved and that a trial wasn’t going to be needed.
Hallihan pleaded guilty to the Motor Vehicle Act charge Friday.
Crown prosecutor Rodney Jordan said the trial on the criminal charge wouldn’t be necessary, as the two counts were alternative charges.
“They’re the exact same facts,” he said, noting the Crown will withdraw the criminal count at the time of sentencing.
Winters requested that a pre-sentence report be prepared on her client for consideration during the sentencing hearing, and Jordan asked for the preparation of victim-impact statements.
Judge Scott Brittain scheduled sentencing for Feb. 16.
Green, 24, of Mill Cove, died as a result of a collision between the car he was driving and Hallihan’s pickup truck the afternoon of Sept. 17, 2022.
An RCMP news release reported that members of the Sussex detachment responded to the scene at around 3 p.m. that day at the intersection of Route 10 and Bagdad Road in the Youngs Cove area.
Green was rushed to hospital but died the next day.
Hallihan was the sole occupant of his pickup and was uninjured, the RCMP reported, and there was a passenger in the car with Green who sustained minor injuries.
The RCMP originally indicated it didn’t believe there was any criminality associated with the fatal accident and that the accident was thought to have occurred when Green made a sudden stop, causing the pickup to rear-end him.
However, the force appeared to change its position on causation and fault when it ultimately laid the charges against Hallihan this summer.
Don MacPherson can be contacted at ftonindependent@gmail.com.