It was a tense and emotional scene in a packed courtroom at the Courtenay Courthouse, as the teen who earlier pleaded guilty to leaving the scene of an accident causing bodily harm last September on Dyke Road, leaving valley resident Molly Burton with critical injuries, received his sentence.
The accused, who can’t be named under the Youth Criminal Justice Act has been given a conditional sentence of two years and therefore will not do any jail time, along with three months house arrest, 200 hours of community service, nine months with a curfew of 10pm to 6am, and a five year driving ban. The house arrest does come with some conditions, as the youth is allowed to leave to go to school, work, and to do the community service.
Following the sentence, Molly Burton addressed the media outside the courthouse.
Burton says she does agree with some aspects of the sentence.
The judge considered several items before delivering the sentence, including the youth’s age, his reported learning disability, as well as his good behavior during the year he was under bail conditions
Burton, who was 24 at the time of the accident, was struck while walking along the roadside, she was thrown into the bushes and lay there for several agonizing hours before being rescued by local resident Brody Fullerton, who had heard her frantic cries from his boat.
