SPEK V. VAN ALTEN

Steven Spek was killed when his car was run over by the rear wheels of an oncoming tractor-trailer, operated by the defendant, Mr. Van Alten. The accident occurred at night along a winding portion of a two-lane highway. The tractor-trailer did not stop at the scene of the accident. Mr. Spek was killed instantly. There were no other witnesses to the accident. The case went to trial on the issue of where the point of impact was and whether the Spek vehicle had crossed the centre-line of the highway into the lane of the oncoming tractor-trailer, or whether the rear wheels of the tractor-trailer had encroached Mr. Spek’s lane of travel. At trial, expert evidence was called, including accident reconstruction evidence from a variety of sources including an OPP reconstruction expert. The trial judge, Justice Morrissette, found that the point of impact must have been in Steven Spek’s lane of travel and that the truck driver’s rear wheels had crossed the centre line, resulting in the fatal accident. This trial result was a complete vindication for Mr. Spek’s family.

Spek v. Van Alten, 2004 CanLII 15925 (ON SC)

Spek v. Van Alten, [2005] O.J. No. 613