A young Brampton man pleaded guilty to impaired driving on Wednesday in a crash involving a couple out delivering newspapers late last year.
Brian Turner, 19, was driving his family's Honda Civic without consent when he hit a blue Ford Focus on Bramalea Road and Central Park Drive in Brampton on Dec. 22, 2010.
The early morning crash killed a 41-year-old woman and left her 45-year-old husband, Vijayaratnam Parameswaran, in serious condition.
An 18-year-old female passenger in the Civic was also taken to hospital.
Police said Turner went through a red light smashing into the southbound Focus.
In a statement read in court on Wednesday, Turner admitted he had a drinking problem and said he was trying to get help. Turner said he had been drinking the night of December 21, and took his mother's car keys in the morning, even though she had tried to hide them.
Parameswaran was in court to hear Turner plead guilty on Wednesday, but declined to speak with media after the appearance.
In a victim impact statement read by his lawyer, the father of two described how his life changed after his wife was killed in the collision.
"I try not to show my children how much pain I am in because I want to be strong for them," Parameswaran's statement read. "When I am alone and thinking about her I often cry … I feel like I have a hole in my heart that will never close."
Turner was charged with impaired operation causing death, dangerous operation of a motor vehicle causing death, two counts of impaired driving causing bodily harm and taking an auto without the owner's consent.
The Crown has asked for Turner to be sentenced to three years in jail, with a 10 year driving ban. The defence says he should only receive 16 months behind bars. Sentencing will take place on June 22.
With a report from CTV Toronto's Zuraidah Alman
