A man from British Columbia, who was found guilty of dangerous driving after hitting several individuals participating in a march to honor residential school survivors, will not be serving jail time. In June 2022, Richard Manuel was convicted for injuring four people with his pickup truck during the procession held in Mission, B.C.

On Monday, Judge Edna Ritchie of the B.C. Provincial Court endorsed a joint submission from the Crown and defense for a nine-month conditional sentence, to be served within the local community. Manuel, who has since relocated to Nova Scotia, was also issued a one-year driving ban applicable nationwide.

According to the judge’s verdict, when Manuel encountered the march, he chose not to wait and instead drove recklessly, hitting at least four individuals. The court also noted that Manuel expressed racial slurs and offensive comments, and the incident had a profound impact on the victims.

Judge Ritchie also took into account several mitigating factors, such as Manuel not having a criminal record, voluntarily surrendering to the police, his age, and no involvement in any subsequent incidents. Manuel’s attorney, Christopher Terepocki, stated in court that the incident was completely out of character for his client.

The Crown provided victim impact statements from several people injured during the march. One of the organizers, Ashton Edwards, has not planned any similar marches since, due to the fear of a similar incident. Troy Zelasko, another victim, has been unable to work as a traffic flagger since the incident and has had to find other employment.

Jeremy Kaastra, another victim, expressed feeling targeted due to his Indigenous identity, and said the incident had both physical and mental effects on him. Under the sentence imposed, Manuel will have to adhere to a curfew from 8 p.m. to 6 a.m. for the first six months and is prohibited from consuming drugs or alcohol.