A drunk driver who killed three young children and their grandfather in a crash three years ago has been denied parole.

Marco Muzzo stared down solemnly as he listened to the victim impact statements at his parole hearing on Wednesday.  The 32-year-old made his first bid for freedom at the Beaver Creek Institution in Gravenhurst.

Edward Lake, the father of Muzzo’s three youngest victims, nine-year-old Daniel Neville-Lake, his five-year-old brother Harrison, their two-year-old sister Milly, was the first to tell the parole board panel just how horrifying the last three years have been through a spokesperson who read the following statement, “My house is so quiet.  I only hear myself breathe.  Rooms are totally empty, only memories linger.”

The mother of the children Muzzo killed told the hearing that his expressions of remorse rung hollow as he had sought parole at the first opportunity.

"I don't and won't get the chance for parole from this life sentence of misery and despair," Jennifer Neville-Lake told the hearing.  “I will still go home, still be empty, still stare at urns, still stare at photos because of an impaired driver who took innocent lives.”

Muzzo was sentenced to 10 years in prison in 2016 after pleading guilty to four counts of impaired driving causing death and two counts of impaired driving causing bodily harm.

The September 2015 crash claimed the lives of the three young children and their 65-year-old grandfather, Gary Neville.

The children's grandmother and great-grandmother were also seriously injured in the collision in Vaughan.

The crash happened after Muzzo had returned from a bachelor party in Florida on a private plane and picked up his car at Pearson International Airport. 

“I just wanted to get home.  I should have known better, I took a chance,” Muzzo said while wiping away tears.  He went on to say he was deeply sorry.

Muzzo was speeding and drove through a stop sign, T-boning the minivan carrying the Neville-Lake family.  He says it was only after he arrived at the police station that he learned the four had died.

Muzzo also told the parole board he vividly remembers hearing the victim’s screams from the crash.

"It's something I can't forget," he said.

A panel with the Parole Board of Canada says Marco Muzzo has not addressed his alcohol misuse.

"We don't question your remorse," the panel said. "It's obvious that this is a very difficult thing for you to deal with."

They went on to say Muzzo sabotaged his progress by “underestimating your problem with substance misuse.”

After just 20 minutes of deliberations, the panel denied Muzzo for both day and full parole.

“There’s no win,” says Jennifer Neville-Lake.  “It’s not a victory because it doesn’t change a single thing for me.  There’s no more of my family left to kill.  There are no more children that will be riding in grandparent’s cars anymore.”

 

Marco Muzzo has the option to appeal the decision by the parole board.  He and his lawyer now have two months to decide whether or not to exercise that option.

- With files from The Canadian Press and CTV's Beatrice Vaisman