Fighting for change in justice system as son's memory is honoured

When Christina and Troy Durocher heard the man responsible for their son's death may never see a day behind bars, they unequivocally said no.

Bailey Durocher, 24, was killed on June 17, 2022, after then-62-year-old Luciano Da Silva made a U-turn into Bailey's motorcycle on Highway 6 in Durham, killing him at the scene.

Da Silva failed a roadside test and two breath samples at a police station revealed two truncated readings of 80 milligrams of alcohol in 100 ml of blood.

Under Canada's criminal code, the threshold for impaired driving is at or above the blood alcohol level of 0.08 per cent.

Da Silva was charged with operation while impaired, operation while impaired with a blood alcohol concentration over 80 mgs and two counts of operation causing death.

However, delays through the court system meant that Da Silva's charges were close to breaching the time limits for trials set in a 2016 Supreme Court decision.

• Related | Justice reform sought by family after man charged with their son's death takes plea deal

The R. v. Jordan decision established that criminal cases that go beyond time limits of 18 months for provincial matters and 30 months for superior court matters, can be stayed for unreasonable delay.

While the Durochers were adamant that they did not want the crown to accept a plea, Da Silva eventually pleaded guilty to only one of his original charges, operation causing death, earlier this summer.

"My son had a right to live," an emotional Christina Durocher told CTV News. "The accused took that right away, yet he is entitled to every right."

According to independent criminal defence lawyer, Ari Goldkind, the plea decision wasn't uncommon.

"We're used to people blowing two or three times the legal limit or being drunk as a skunk," Goldkind said. "When you blow right at the legal limit, which is 0.08, and you make an illegal or improper U-turn, which is really a marked departure of having alcohol in your system and making a U-turn that you shouldn't, it allows there to be some wiggle room or flexibility to plead down the charge to dangerous driving causing death."

Last month, Da Silva was granted house arrest as part of his two years less a day conditional sentence last month.

"The consensus was likely between the judge, the crown and the defence lawyer that jail would solve nothing and that a serious conditional house arrest would address the principles of sentencing," Goldkind added. "But that is of course, as I say that, very cold comfort to the family and friends of the deceased."

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Mother's Against Drunk Driving (MADD Canada) chose to honour Durocher by adding him to its Ontario memorial monument this fall.

The monument honours individuals killed in alcohol and drug-related crashes.

"In this case, there was evidence that the driver had consumed alcohol before driving and failed a roadside breath test," read a statement from MADD Canada. "The criminal justice process is complex and often leaves victims and survivors feeling disappointed. It is an imperfect system that rarely delivers the kind of justice victims and survivors expect."

During Da Silva's sentencing, police were called to the Owen Sound courthouse after an outburst by the Durochers.

"When the judge looked at us and said, 'I hope you can find some peace,' it was the first time that we really stood up and said no, we're not happy," Christina Durocher added. "It was a complete injustice, a complete injustice. They failed Bailey."

The Durochers want to see change through the criminal justice system.

Part of that, is helping to carry on the legacy of Bailey.

This summer, the Durochers and Bailey's former baseball organizations advocated for Owen Sound City Council to put up a new scoreboard at Tom Williams Park.

That scoreboard will have a commemoration to Bailey, who spent his entire life playing baseball.

"He was a special player and pretty soon, you realized he was not just a ball player, he was a 24-year-old kid who had a profound impact on a lot of lives in a short amount of time," said Ryan Bartley, who met Bailey three years ago when starting up a baseball program Owen Sound.

Bartley played and coached alongside Bailey and grew close to him and his family.

When installed, the new scoreboard will bear the message 'In Honour of Bailey Durocher, #BD 23.'

"I can promise you that there will be a lot of people there that want to talk about him (Bailey)," Bartley added. "So, I think and we all think it's important for that to live on."