Island man pleads guilty, fined $7K in watercraft collision that killed his friend

Morgan Arnold MacLeod, 23, pleaded guilty Monday in P.E.I. Supreme Court in Charlottetown to careless operation of a vessel under the Canada Shipping Act and was fined $7,000 in connection with a watercraft collision last summer in Charlottetown harbour that killed his friend.

Carter Michael Wood, 21, of Cherry Valley, died in the incident in August 2018.

An agreed statement of facts read in court Monday outlined the tragic incident.

Wood and MacLeod were "the best of friends," according to the statement.

Making 'turns and loops'

On August 18, 2018, they and a group of other young people in their early 20s rented personal watercraft in Charlottetown.

They headed out on the water toward Keppoch Beach in Stratford, at times "making waves and splashing each other" on the machines. At other times, they were "making turns and loops around each other," the statement read. 

MacLeod and Carter were riding solo on their machines. 

Shortly before 6 p.m., according to the statement, MacLeod was "operating his Sea-Doo machine at speed" to try to make a wave to splash a machine ridden by two of the young women in their group.

"Carter was also operating his machine with speed nearby," according to the statement, when the machines operated by Carter and Morgan collided. 

"Morgan and Carter were splashing and didn't see each other and just came right into each other," one of the young people later told investigators.

"Morgan's went over top of Carter's," said another member of the group, according to the agreed facts.

After the crash, Wood was found face down in the water. He was wearing a life-jacket.  

Rescue attempts 

The group of young people managed, after some difficulty, to pull Wood out of the water and onto the back of one of the personal watercraft.

The hope here is that the public will learn— Justice Jacqueline Matheson

They also phoned for help and signalled to other nearby boats.

One of the boats that responded had a dingy, into which the rescuers placed Wood. One of the boaters who responded started chest compressions. A trained nurse from another boat jumped into the water and swam to the dingy to assist the man doing compressions.

A trained paramedic who happened to be nearby also responded when he heard the emergency call on a marine radio.

Wood was transferred to a Canadian Coast Guard vessel and transported to shore and then to Queen Elizabeth Hospital.

A report from the coroner reported drowning as the cause of death.

'Importance of avoiding collision'

Crown prosecutor Lisa Goulden called use of personal watercraft in the way that MacLeod and others used them that day as "inherently dangerous and reckless." 

She cited sections of federal safe-boating guidelines that specifically warn against it.

"So much of the safety manual stresses the importance of avoiding collision," said Goulden. "I hope that's what the public learns from this."

MacLeod's defence lawyers also said employees of the rental company did not perform a "rental boat safety checklist" that day with the renters, as required, according to the agreed statement of facts.

The rental company was not consulted on the agreed statement of facts that was presented in court Monday. CBC News contacted the company to seek a response, but did not receive an immediate reply.

Parents attend court

Some of the parents of the young people involved in the tragedy attended Monday's sentencing. Court heard that Carter Wood's mother lost her only child.  She chose not to attend the hearing, the Crown prosecutor told court, because she found it too painful.

Morgan MacLeod had originally been charged with the more serious offence of dangerous operation of a vessel, and a four-day criminal trial was slated to begin Monday. He was found not guilty of that charge after entering a guilty plea to the lesser, non-criminal infraction under the Canada Shipping Act.

"The tragic consequences alone do not make this criminal," Justice Jacqueline Matheson told court as she handed down the fine. "The behaviour can be classified as careless due to the inexperience of the operator."

"There are no words this court can express to the mother to compensate for her loss," said Matheson. "The hope here is that the public will learn about safer operation."

The Crown prosecutors and defence lawyers jointly recommended the $7,000 fine. The offence carries a $10,000 maximum.

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