Posted on 04/27/2014 5:22:00 PM PDT by rickmichaels
INNISFIL - A woman who held Brandon Majewski’s hand in his last dying seconds after he was struck and killed by an SUV says she will never forget that night.
“It’s not a memory I will ever forget,” said Melanie Lachance, 36, a school teacher who works in Vaughan.
Brandon, 17, and his two friends were out riding their bikes on the dark stretch of Innisfil Beach Rd. after 1 a.m Oct. 28, 2012. Brandon’s friend was seriously injured while another sustained only scratches. Police say they were riding side-by-side on the road.
Lachance remembers pulling over and seeing the red glint of bicycle reflectors from the busted bicycles in the ditch. She spotted one boy moaning in the ditch and her husband rushed to him. Another boy was panicked but unharmed, she said.
Then she spotted Brandon, laying in the middle of the road.
“He was right in the line of oncoming traffic … I held his hand, but there was nothing I could do,” Lachance said. “He took some gasping breaths. It hits you even harder later on.”
She says she recalls the driver’s “husband” suddenly appeared frantic at the side of the road and asked her their location so he could call police. She told him and he walked back to his wife’s vehicle.
“Then he was gone,” Lachance said. “I never saw him again.”
Alone, she attempted CPR but someone else with more expertise arrived and took over.
One thing continues to trouble her, she said, is why she and other witnesses were forced to remain at the scene for hours, until 5:30 a.m., as police conducted their investigation, while the driver of the vehicle and her husband were allowed to go home.
“That never sat right with us,” Lachance said. “It was very troubling … we always wondered why.”
The lawyer representing Brandon’s family who is now being sued by the driver is also looking for answers.
“Some things about the case aren’t making sense right now,” says Barrie lawyer Brian Cameron. “We are looking for answers so this family can find some peace.”
Brandon’s family remains confounded over why the woman who struck and killed him believes she is the one who should be financially compensated for killing their son.
Brandon’s estate, and his two friends, are all being sued by the driver, Sharlene Simon, formerly of Innisfil, for $1.35 million for emotional trauma she says she has suffered.
Even more confusing Cameron said, is the fact that the woman’s husband, Jules Simon, a York Regional Police officer, is also suing for $100,000 for damages and expenses incurred because of his wife’s suffering.
According to the police report and court documents, Jules Simon was following his wife in another vehicle the night of tragedy. But Cameron doesn’t know why he was following her, or where they were coming from.
“These are questions I’m hoping I can find answers to,” Cameron said.
The police report also states alcohol is not suspected and that Simon admitted to driving at 90 km/h in an 80 km/h zone. No charges were ever laid.
“The point is this family is suffering and no amount of money can bring Brandon back,” Cameron said. “But shedding some light on these questions will help bring closure for this family.”
I’ve seen those things. Modern day mopeds? They’re weird whatever they are.
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