Tony Brown thinks tougher drinking and driving laws should be an election issue after the hit and run that sent his 12-year-old son Jesse to hospital with critical injuries.
Brown told The Langley Advance Times that Jesse suffered multiple broken bones in his face, as well as a broken arm and fractures to his back when he was hit by a Nissan Pathfinder driven by a 29-year-old Langley woman on Friday, Sept. 13.
It happened around 3:30 p.m. in the 4900-block of 232nd Street in Langley, not far from Peterson Road Elementary, where Jesse is a Grade 7 student.
“He was walking home from school,” Brown said.
As of Saturday, Jesse remained unconscious on life-support and has undergone 11 hours of surgery, Brown said.
“He’s been out the whole time,” Brown said.
The driver fled the scene and was found later and taken into custody, said RCMP spokesperson Cpl. Holly Largy.
A male passenger was also arrested after he allegedly attempted to hide the vehicle after the collision, Largy added.
Police said the crash that injured Jesse Brown was one of a series of car collisions involving young victims.
It is believed the same driver struck an 18-year-old leaving school near Langley Secondary School at about 3:10 p.m. the same afternoon. The teen sustained injuries requiring medical care, but was treated and released from the hospital, Largy said.
Largy added that there may have been other collisions linked to the same driver.
“Investigators believe the Nissan Pathfinder travelled quite significantly around the Lower Mainland in advance of the Langley collisions,” Largy said.
“It is possible they drove through Aldergrove, Walnut Grove, Downtown Vancouver, North Vancouver and finally Surrey before returning to Langley and may have been involved in other collisions.”
The 29-year-old suspect was given a demand for a breath sample by a police officer, and initially refused, Largy said. She provided samples later in the evening that showed she exceeded the legal blood alcohol limit.
The woman was released from custody after being served with an Administrative Driving Prohibition.
Brown called that “outrageous.”
“I just can’t believe the law. Anyone who commits an offence like that shouldn’t be released after seven hours,” Brown said.
“It doesn’t make sense.”
Brown said he would like to see tougher penalties for drinking and driving become an election issue during the current federal campaign.
”The laws have got to be changed,” Brown said.
READ MORE: Long road in fight against impaired driving
Anyone that witnessed either collision or others involving the Nissan Pathfinder and has not spoken to police is asked to call Langley RCMP at 604-532-3200.
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Email: dan.ferguson@langleyadvancetimes.com
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