Wrong-way Highway 11 driver acquitted in 2018 serious head-on crash
An Orillia man responsible for causing a head-on collision when he drove the wrong way on Highway 11 four years ago, sending a woman to the hospital with life-altering injuries, has been acquitted.
Michael Grelowski, 41, was charged with two counts of dangerous driving causing bodily harm after driving his SUV south in the northbound lanes on April 11, 2018, crashing into another vehicle.
Jennilynn Reed was in that vehicle with her two children.
Reed suffered several injuries, including a shattered pelvis, a ruptured diaphragm, and multiple broken bones, leaving her unable to walk without the use of a cane. One of her kids was injured in the crash but has since recovered.
During the trial, Grelowski's lawyer reasoned his client, who has type-one diabetes, was in a state of neuroglycopenia – a medical condition that left him unaware of his dangerously low blood glucose level and unable to correct it.
Witnesses testified seeing a black SUV travelling erratically along the highway through Orillia on the evening of the crash.
- Orillia man may have suffered medical condition prior to 2018 crash: Expert
- Crown rejects diabetes expert testimony in wrong-way crash trial
The Crown had argued that Grelowski ignored signs of his blood glucose dropping and made a conscious decision to drive that day. She added he failed to test his blood sugar level before getting behind the wheel.
Justice Boswell said he was satisfied with expert testimony that Grelowski was "confused and disoriented," causing him to get on the highway going in the wrong direction, swerving and passing several vehicles.
Calling Grelowski a "candid witness," Justice Boswell said he believed Grelowski's blood sugar fell "too quickly for him to do anything about it," and he was "completely unable to appreciate the risk he was taking."
Meanwhile, Reed said she's disappointed with the decision and has since filed a civil lawsuit against Grelowski.
"Financially, it's ruining us," she said, adding she feels he has yet to take the matter seriously.
"The fact that the guy thinks it's a joke is a whole other thing that bugs me," she said. "Don't take this as a joke. It's something that you should apologize for."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
U.S. Capitol riot: More people turn up with evidence against Donald Trump
More witnesses are coming forward with new details on the Jan. 6 U.S. Capitol riot following former White House aide Cassidy Hutchinson's devastating testimony last week against former U.S. President Donald Trump, says a member of a U.S. House committee investigating the insurrection.
Dog left with lost baggage at Toronto Pearson Airport for about 21 hours
A Toronto woman says a dog she rescued from the Dominican Republic has been traumatized after being left in a corner of Toronto Pearson International Airport with baggage for about 21 hours.
Chinese-Canadian tycoon due to stand trial in China, embassy says
Chinese-Canadian billionaire Xiao Jianhua, who went missing in Hong Kong five years ago, was due to go on trial in China on Monday, the Canadian embassy in Beijing said.
'Hell on earth': Ukrainian soldiers describe life on eastern front
Torched forests and cities burned to the ground. Colleagues with severed limbs. Bombardments so relentless the only option is to lie in a trench, wait and pray. Ukrainian soldiers returning from the front lines in eastern Ukraine’s Donbas region, where Russia is waging a fierce offensive, describe life during what has turned into a gruelling war of attrition as apocalyptic.
Video shows police in Ohio kill Black man in hail of gunfire
A Black man was unarmed when Akron police chased him on foot and killed him in a hail of gunfire, but officers believed he had shot at them earlier from a vehicle and feared he was preparing to fire again, authorities said Sunday at a news conference.
Poorest Canadians nearly 4 times more likely to die from opioids than richest: study
A new study looking at opioid deaths across Canada over 17 years has found that low-income Canadians are almost four times more likely to die from opioids than high-income Canadians.
Shooting at Williams Lake, B.C. stampede injures 2, forces evacuation
Two people are injured and a third is in custody after what RCMP describe as a 'public shooting' at a rodeo in B.C. Sunday.
After a metre of rain, 32,000 around Sydney, Australia, may need to flee
More than 30,000 residents of Sydney and its surrounds were told to evacuate or prepare to abandon their homes Monday as Australia's largest city faces its fourth, and possibly worst, round of flooding in less than a year and a half.
Pope Francis denies he's planning to resign soon
Pope Francis has dismissed reports that he plans to resign in the near future, saying he is on track to visit Canada this month and hopes to be able to go to Moscow and Kyiv as soon as possible after that.
Atlantic
-
'There should have been one': N.S. mother drives son to ER after waiting nearly an hour for ambulance
A Nova Scotia mother says she had to drive her son to hospital herself on Canada Day when no ambulance showed up after more than 40 minutes.
-
'I think they should be regulated': Dog owner shares thoughts on private fireworks after dog dies
Canada Day weekend fireworks have sparked more calls to either regulate or ban backyard fireworks displays in Nova Scotia.
-
'Incompetent': New Brunswick cabinet minister blasts Air Canada for cancellation
New Brunswick's education minister is lashing out at Air Canada, saying the airline is incompetent because it decided on the weekend to cancel a Monday flight that would have taken him and four officials to a meeting in Regina.
Montreal
-
Montreal-area gas prices dip below $2-per-litre
Prices at the gas pumps dropped from record highs by almost 20 cents and dipped below $2 for the first time in months in the Greater Montreal Area over the weekend.
-
Montreal conservation group angered after Monarch fields mowed
A Montreal conservation group is baffled and frustrated after a field of shrubs, flowers, and, importantly, milkweed was mowed.
-
Parks Canada cancels camping event in Montreal amid criticism over unhoused people
Advocates for Montreal's homeless residents ramped up critiques of Parks Canada over the weekend, saying a series of local camping events the agency has scheduled throughout the summer set a double standard between those with financial means and those without.
Ottawa
-
'He was a hero': Family says Ottawa man killed in fatal collision sacrificed himself
The family of an Ottawa man killed in a Canada Day crash in the west end says Tom Bergeron died exactly as he lived: selflessly thinking of others before himself.
-
NEW THIS MORNING
NEW THIS MORNING | Final week of testimony at the Ottawa LRT public inquiry
City Manager Steve Kanellakos will take the stand at the public inquiry into Ottawa's light rail transit system this morning, as the final four days of testimony begins at the University of Ottawa.
-
Sunshine ahead for first full week of July in the capital
Sunshine ahead for first full week of July in the capital
Toronto
-
One person dead in double stabbing outside Mississauga banquet hall
One person is dead and another is in hospital after they were both stabbed outside a banquet hall in Mississauga early on Monday morning.
-
Dog left with lost baggage at Toronto Pearson Airport for about 21 hours
A Toronto woman says a dog she rescued from the Dominican Republic has been traumatized after being left in a corner of Toronto Pearson International Airport with baggage for about 21 hours.
-
Man dies in Scarborough crash; 3 others injured
One man is dead and three other people are in hospital after a triple-car collision in Scarborough on Sunday night.
Kitchener
-
Driveway paved without permission needs to be ripped up, says Puslinch, Ont. homeowner
A Puslinch, Ont. woman says her driveway will need to be repaved less than month after she came home to find strangers working on it without her prior consent.
-
Justin Bieber's family member allegedly involved in fiery Stratford crash
A fiery crash shut down a Stratford street on Tuesday and witnesses tell CTV News one of Justin Bieber's family members was allegedly involved.
-
Gun call prompts police response at Kitchener encampment
Police were called to a Kitchener encampment on Saturday after they received a report of a disturbance involving a gun.
London
-
Vacant south London DQ goes up in flames, again
London police have been called in to investigate a fire at the vacant Dairy Queen on Wharncliffe Road in London.
-
Hot humid temperatures continue through the London region
Warm temperatures continue through the London area this week with the chance of some relief from the dryness on Tuesday
-
'Great to see it alive again'; Fire Hall Market in Port Stanley opens with successful weekend
From tourists to residents, those visiting the new Fire Hall Market in Port Stanley, Ont. described opening weekend as "bringing new life into the village."
Northern Ontario
-
Dog left with lost baggage at Toronto Pearson Airport for about 21 hours
A Toronto woman says a dog she rescued from the Dominican Republic has been traumatized after being left in a corner of Toronto Pearson International Airport with baggage for about 21 hours.
-
Man still looking for his bags at Toronto Pearson airport 16 days after arriving in the city
As unclaimed luggage continue to pile up at Pearson International Airport, one local resident has been looking for his bags for 16 days after arriving in Toronto.
-
U.S. Capitol riot: More people turn up with evidence against Donald Trump
More witnesses are coming forward with new details on the Jan. 6 U.S. Capitol riot following former White House aide Cassidy Hutchinson's devastating testimony last week against former U.S. President Donald Trump, says a member of a U.S. House committee investigating the insurrection.
Windsor
-
-
Jennifer Jones of Windsor becomes Rotary International's first woman president
Windsor's Jennifer Jones has taken office as Rotary International's first woman president in its 117-year history
-
'We’ve lost the summer season': Windsor-Essex tourism sector laments extension of border restrictions
Tourism officials and business leaders in Windsor-Essex are frustrated and worried about how the sector will handle another summer of border requirements to enter Canada.
Calgary
-
Albertans rally in support of women impacted by decision to overturn Roe v. Wade
Hundreds of people gathered Sunday afternoon in Calgary and Edmonton to support women impacted by the U.S. Supreme Court's decision to end constitutional protections for abortion.
-
Vancouver police service dog named after Calgary police officer
A Vancouver Transit Police service dog has a special connection to the Calgary Police Service.
-
Airdrie girl with life-threatening illness heartbroken to miss Monday concert by her idol Shawn Mendes
All a 14-year-old Airdrie girl named Kaley Biggar wanted was to see Shawn Mendes sing on Monday, but then she received a life-threatening diagnosis.
Saskatoon
-
In pictures: Saskatoon’s 10 most expensive house listings
The number of homes for sale in Saskatoon has increased but the number of places to buy remains 20 per cent lower than last year, according to the Saskatchewan Realtors Association.
-
'Tragic event': Three people dead in ATV collision, Sask. RCMP say
Three people are dead after two ATVs crashed on Highway 925 just outside of Dillon, Sask. on Friday night.
-
Wakaw, Sask. pharmacy robbed of prescription meds, RCMP say
Police are investigating a pharmacy robbery Saturday afternoon in Wakaw and are asking for people's photos taken in the area.
Edmonton
-
'It went through my daughter's room': Bullets hit southeast Edmonton home
A southeast Edmonton family is stunned after two bullets hit their home Saturday, with one narrowly missing a young girl's bedroom.
-
Albertans rally in support of women impacted by decision to overturn Roe v. Wade
Hundreds of people gathered Sunday afternoon in Calgary and Edmonton to support women impacted by the U.S. Supreme Court's decision to end constitutional protections for abortion.
-
Edmonton's Marco Arop clocks world's third-fastest 800 metres
Marco Arop is rounding into form at the perfect time.
Vancouver
-
Shooting at Williams Lake, B.C. stampede injures 2, forces evacuation
Two people are injured and a third is in custody after what RCMP describe as a 'public shooting' at a rodeo in B.C. Sunday.
-
Inflation, 'adversarial culture' in B.C. labour relations landscape could lead to job action
Observers are warning bargaining underway in the public and private sectors could get contentious with skyrocketing inflation, pandemic stressors and a history of clashes between employers and unions in British Columbia.
-
'An incredible future ahead of him': Memorial ride held for cyclist killed in Vancouver crash
A memorial ride was held Sunday for a man killed while cycling in downtown Vancouver.