The mothers of three young men killed by a suspected drunk driver near Invermere, B.C., are disappointed after the accused was a no-show at her second court appearance.
Haley Jade Watson, who turns 23 this year, is accused of three counts of impaired driving causing death and three counts of dangerous driving causing death in the July 9, 2024 collision.
Watson was scheduled to appear at the Invermere Law Courts for an application for a warrant Monday, following a Jan. 13 first appearance where she arrived at the courthouse but never entered the building.
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Instead, the B.C. Prosecution Service (BCPS) said Watson’s lawyer filed a counsel designation form enabling him to appear on her behalf.
The matter was then adjourned to the Cranbrook Law Courts where a date for the next appearance was scheduled.
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Counsel attended and the accused was recorded as not being present, according to the BCPS.
Watson’s next court date is March 10 in Invermere, where she is scheduled to elect a mode of trial.
“It’s just something that totally could have been prevented,” said Amanda Murray.
Murray’s 21-year-old son Gavin of Wilmer, Jackson Freeman, 25, from Sherwood Park, Alta., and Brady Tardif, 25, from Calgary, died when the truck they were riding in went off the highway and down an embankment on Westside Road near Panorama Drive in Wilmer, B.C. last summer.
Murray said Gavin, who loved to hunt, fish and be outdoors, was a kind-hearted soul with a heart of gold.
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“He would drop what he was doing and help out even a stranger if he thought they needed help,” Murray told Global News on Sunday, as she and the other mothers visited a memorial at the scene of the deadly crash. “He was just a beautiful person who was taken way too early.”
Janet Dahl-Freeman said it’s been a very difficult road forward and the families are taking it day by day.
She lost her 25-year-old son Jackson, who had just earned his Red Seal in carpentry.
“I’ll see something that reminds me of Jack or of any of the boys, or driving by the ball diamond where they played their last game the night before,” Dahl-Freeman said in an interview.
Aniessa Bowen told Global News she never expected to bury her little brother, 25-year-old Brady Tardif.
“Everyone who knew him loved him, he was a wild child,” Bowen said Sunday. “He was also just like the guy that you could call if you ever needed anything.”
Tardif leaves behind a two-year-old son, Ace, who family members are helping his partner raise.
“When we come to Invermere, it’s like our whole world stops,” said Tardif’s mother Karen Lloyd. “I need to be here for my son and to be his voice.”
The mothers are committed to following the court process through and are hopeful their journey will end with justice.
“There’s just so much that we’re missing out on and those boys just had the rest of their lives ahead of them,” said Dahl-Freeman.
