Children testify at Taman inquiry
The inquiry into the police investigation and court case surrounding the death of Crystal Taman heard emotional testimony from the victim's children Tuesday morning.
Taman, a 40-year-old mother of three, was killed in February 2005 when her car, stopped at a traffic light in East St. Paul, was struck by a pickup truck driven by Derek Harveymordenzenk, then an off-duty Winnipeg police officer who had spent the night partying with colleagues.
Harveymordenzenk, also known as Derek Harvey-Zenk, received a two-year conditional sentence after pleading guilty to dangerous driving causing death, a plea bargain that stirred public outrage and prompted the government to call the inquiry. He served no jail time, and has since turned in his badge.
Each of Taman's children testified Tuesday morning. Her eldest daugher, Tara, related how she and her family had struggled to understand the court process, and how gradually they learned the drunk-driving aspects of the case collapsed.
"Every day, my family wakes up and this is on their minds," she said. "It's a mess."
Tara's brother, Jordan, broke down on the stand as he described how the family last saw their mother at the hospital.
He also testified that Harold Bakema, then the chief of the East St. Paul police department that initially investigated the crash, had told the family that Harveymordenzenk had refused a breathalyzer and that charges would stick.
Harveymordenzenk was initially charged with refusing a breathalyzer, impaired driving causing death and criminal negligence causing death, but those charges were dropped without explanation when Harveymordenzenk pleaded guilty to dangerous driving.
The court hearing the case was told Harveymordenzenk had been out at a party with other off-duty officers in the hours before the crash, but no evidence was offered about whether the former officer had been drinking.
Examine conducts of parties involved
The Taman Inquiry, as it is formally named in Manitoba, is a fact-finding mission, but it also leaves room for inquiry lawyers to call for another police investigation.
The inquiry, led by former Ontario Superior Court justice Roger Salhany, will first examine the Taman family's treatment by the court system and victims' services.
Its focus will then shift to the conduct of the police involved in the investigation into the crash that killed Taman.
The inquiry will also examine the conduct of Harveymordenzenk and other Winnipeg police officers before the crash, and how lawyers arrived at the plea agreement that spared Harveymordenzenk of time behind bars.
Hearings are expected to take place over the next three months. The commissioner is scheduled to deliver a final report to the province's attorney general by Sept. 30.