Brayden Bushby- Staff Photo
Judge Helen Pierce has found 22 year old Brayden Bushby guilty on the charge of manslaughter.
The charges stem from the July 2017 death of 34 year old Barbara Kentner, in which court was told Kentner was struck by a trailer hitch thrown from a passing vehicle in January of that year.
In her verdict Monday at the Courthouse Hotel, Judge Pierce indicated Bushby’s actions were a contributing cause of Kentner’s death, were objectively dangerous, and that injury to Kentner was foreseeable.
Defence Lawyer George Joseph says his client is disappointed but does have the option to file an appeal.
“Mr. Bushby has 30 days from sentencing to decide whether he’s going to appeal this but that’s a decision between Mr. Bushby and whichever lawyer he hires for that purpose, should he decide to go that route,” Joseph says. “Obviously the judge considered the submissions by both Crown and Defence very comprehensively and came to a decision, which unfortunately was not in Mr. Bushby’s favour.”
Meantime the Crown’s Andrew Sadler declined to comment on the judge’s decision, only saying that the focus is now on the sentencing hearing.
“Mr. Bushby is released on bail conditions and those conditions will remain in place until the imposition of sentence,” Sadler notes.
Family Reaction
Barbara Kentner’s sister Melissa isn’t satisfied that Brayden Bushby won’t be held in custody until his sentence.
“Look at the colour of his skin! He gets to go spend the holidays with his family meanwhile Serena, who’s fighting cancer, can’t spend time with her family. It aggravates me,” Kentner says outside the courthouse, which was quiet when the judge’s decision was handed down.
“Overall it’s a good outcome, it’s what we wanted in general,” remarks Barbara Kentner’s other sister Connie.
The sisters also argued that the trial and sentencing were more lenient because of the colour of Bushby’s skin.
“I’m happy, but why is he still able to walk the streets until his sentencing hearing?” Connie and Melissa remarked, “If it was an aboriginal, he’d be on the bus already to prison.”
The sentencing hearing is scheduled for Tuesday February 9th at 10:00 a.m.
