Teen pleads guilty to 5 counts connected to fatal Saskatoon crash

The teenage passenger of a stolen vehicle pleaded guilty this morning to five counts connected to a fatal crash earlier this year in Saskatoon.

The court heard that the 18-year-old woman, who was 17 years old at the time of the crash, encouraged the driver of the vehicle not to stop when police pursued. 

Cheyann Peeteetuce was driving a stolen truck when the crash happened in the early evening of May 5 at 22nd Street West and Avenue M.

Police said the sequence of events started when an officer spotted a green 1997 Chevy pick-up that had been reported stolen. The owner had left his keys in the truck.

The officer followed that truck for a few blocks and then turned on the emergency lights. Eighteen seconds later, the truck smashed into the side of a Malibu travelling eastbound on 22nd Street towards the downtown. 

The car was carrying three students from Bethlehem High School who were on the their way to track practice. J.P. Haughey, 17, and his front seat passenger, Sarah Wensley, 17, were killed. A 16-year-old girl in the backseat suffered serious injuries but survived. 

The families of Haughey and Wensley were in court this morning.

Haughey's family was separated from the teen by a pane of glass in the prisoner's box, and they sobbed quietly as soon as she was led into the courtroom.

Judge Albert Lavoie ordered an intensive pre-sentence report with an emphasis on canvassing the personal circumstances of the teen, programming opportunities and so-called Gladue factors that would speak to her background and upbringing.

She's back in court January 8.