Cries of racism fill courtroom as judge stays impaired driving charge in Saskatoon

Tears and cries filled a packed Saskatoon provincial courtroom on Friday as Judge Jane Wooten stayed the case of a woman who struck and killed a nine year old girl on a crosswalk in Saskatoon in 2021, citing delays.

“You’re forever going down as the white judge who upheld white supremacy,” one woman bellowed.

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Others echoed those words, shouting “racist” from the gallery, while a woman wept while holding a Polaroid photo of the little girl and others sobbed outside the courtroom.

Taylor Ashley Kennedy — who made her final appearance through video — was charged with impaired driving causing death in the Sept. 9, 2021 crash that killed Bayleigh Maurice. The nine-year-old girl was on her way to school, riding a scooter through a marked crosswalk on 33rd Street West when she was struck.

Kennedy, the first person in Saskatchewan to face a THC-related impaired driving charge, had admitted to police that she had used both cannabis and magic mushrooms in the 24-hour period before the fatal crash. Her trial began in October 2023, and was marked by numerous delays.

The charges were stayed because the case exceeded the 18-month window set out by the Supreme Court of Canada in its landmark 2016 decision R v. Jordan, running approximately six months past the allowable time frame.

A voir dire, often referred to as a trial within a trial, was also held to determine the admissibility of evidence. The defence argued that some of Kennedy’s admissions to police be excluded, claiming her Charter rights were violated.

Rhane Mahingen, the aunt of 9-year-old Bayleigh Maurice, said she does not want her niece’s memory to be forgotten. (Mia Holowaychuk/650 CKOM)

‘This little girl deserves justice’

Rhane Mahingen, the aunt of Maurice, said Friday’s decision felt like the day her family lost her niece all over again.

“This little girl deserves justice, and that’s not what we got,” she told reporters outside the courtroom on Friday.

“I want (the) white community to look at her and not see her just as an Indigenous little girl, but as somebody’s daughter, somebody’s granddaughter, somebody’s niece, someone who brought light to the entirety of the Mayfair community, and somebody who shouldn’t be forgotten and swept under the rug,” she said.

Mahingen criticised the court system for systemic racism while advocating for stronger impairment laws, stating she believes there should be a mandatory minimum sentence for impaired driving causing death.

“Please, on this holiday season, don’t get behind the wheel if you’re impaired, and hold your little ones close to your heart, because you don’t know how long you have with them,” she said.

Bonnie Missens, a lawyer in Saskatchewan for over 30 years from Pasqua First Nation, where Maurice’s mother is from, was in the courtroom showing support for the family.

“The justice system for Indigenous people is not working,” she said “Our jails are full of Indigenous people.

“I’ve been involved in the justice system over half my life, and I want to believe that justice does happen, but on days like this, it’s really hard for me to say that.”

Missens said she will continue to support the family, with plans for a fourth memorial next September to honour Maurice’s memory.

Thomas Hynes, defence lawyer for Taylor Kennedy, says the prosecution was ‘flawed from the get-go.’ / Mia Holowaychuk (Mia Holowaychuk/650 CKOM)

‘Flawed from the get-go’

Defence lawyer Thomas Hynes said he is happy with the decision to stay proceedings, stating the prosecution was “flawed from the get-go.”

“We’ve been saying for some time now that the trial has taken too long,” he said.

“We appreciate the care that the judge gave to reviewing all the details and talking about the kind of tortured history of the case.”

If the judge ruled otherwise, Hynes said the defence would maintain its position that the police investigation violated Kennedy’s rights “in a number of significant ways,” which in turn would have excluded evidence against her.

Still, Hynes expects the Crown will follow the decision with a notice of appeal.

“We look forward to beating the Court of Appeal, too,” he said.

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