A driver who struck and killed a woman and her three young daughters nearly two years ago “gambled with other people’s lives” when he took the wheel-Zamkuwire

A driver who struck and killed a woman and her three young daughters nearly two years ago “gambled with other people’s lives” when he took the wheel, an Ontario judge said Monday when sentencing him to 17 years behind bars.

Brady Robertson’s “cavalier attitude” toward driving laws called out for a significant sentence, Ontario Court Justice Sandra Caponecchia told a Brampton, Ont., court Monday morning.

Robertson had accumulated 15 driving infractions in the two and a half years before the June 18, 2020 crash in Brampton that killed Karolina Ciasullo and her daughters Klara, Lilianna and Mila, who were between the ages of six and one.

Just two days earlier, on June 16, Robertson had failed to stop at an intersection and crashed into a barrier, the judge said. As a result of the impact, he was “jolted out of his slumber,” and sped away to evade police, she said. The fact that no one was hurt in that incident is “pure happenstance,” the judge said.

Earlier crash not a ‘wake-up call,’ judge says

Robertson was not deterred by any previous penalties for his driving, and the June 16 crash did not serve as a “wake-up call,” as it should have, Caponecchia said.

“I have avoided calling both crashes an accident. That is because both were anything but an accident; both crashes were crimes, not accidents,” she said. “Both crimes were 100 per cent avoidable, had Mr. Robertson had any regard for the lives and safety of others.”

Robertson, 21, will receive nearly three years in credit for time already served awaiting trial, bringing the total down to 14 years and two months.

He was also handed a 34-year driving ban beginning at the start of his jail term. That amounts to a 20-year-ban following his release.

Prosecutors had sought a 23-year prison sentence and a lifetime driving ban. The defence, meanwhile, argued Robertson should be sentenced to seven years.

‘Our whole family is devastated’

Gasps could be heard amid sobs in the packed courtroom as Caponecchia delivered her sentence.

Outside, Ciasullo’s relatives denounced the sentence as inadequate in light of Robertson’s actions and the permanent, devastating impact on their lives.

“As much as Canada is a great country, I am beyond disgusted with the justice system that someone who takes away four lives gets so little time,” said Anna Martin, Ciasullo’s sister. “Our whole family is devastated … No one is the same anymore.”

Connie Ciasullo, Karolina Ciasullo’s sister-in-law, said that after credit for time served, Robertson will spend roughly three and a half years behind bars for each life he took.

Her brother, Michael Ciasullo, will never recover from the deaths of his wife and daughters, she said. “He’ll never be who he was,”she said.

Robertson was playing “Russian roulette” when he got behind the wheel that day, she said. “It happened to be our family that suffered, but it could have been any other family,” she added.

‘I want to serve my time,’ says Robertson

In July 2021, Robertson pleaded guilty to four counts of dangerous driving causing death in connection with crash.

But he pleaded not guilty to four counts of operation while impaired by drugs causing death, and his lawyers challenged the constitutionality of Canada’s law setting out a legal limit for THC blood concentration when driving.

Caponecchia found Robertson had a blood THC concentration of 40 nanograms of THC per millilitre of blood about 45 minutes after the crash, which is eight times the legal limit.

The constitutional challenge was rejected last month, and as a result, Robertson has been found guilty of impaired driving.

In her ruling, Caponecchia acknowledged Robertson has lived a difficult life, marred by drug use and abuse. She also noted that he has expressed remorse for his actions.

At a sentencing hearing last month, Robertson apologized for his actions, saying he was “deeply tormented” by what he did.

Robertson said he will feel guilty for the rest of his life and wants to take responsibility for his actions.

“I wanted to end my life countless times, but that would be a coward way to go,” he said at the time. “I want to pay for what I did, I want to serve my time … This family deserves justice.”