Mother of woman killed by car upset after charges dropped against driver

Crown drops all charges in vehicle death Mother of young mom is upset and angry no one will be held accountable for daughter's death. Kyle Moore reports.

SYDNEY, N.S. — The mother of a young Cape Breton woman who died two years ago after being struck by a vehicle is both upset and angry that no one will be held accountable for her daughter's death.

The Crown dropped all charges against Kimberly Ann O'Dea on Monday after a judge ruled a statement taken by police would not be admitted into evidence at the trial.

The family of Dana Jessome left the Sydney courtroom in tears.

The 28-year-old woman was hit by a vehicle and died in 2017. At the time, police charged O'Dea, her former partner, with second-degree murder -- a charge that was reduced to manslaughter and then thrown out all together on Monday.

"I just feel like my daughter didn't get any justice," said Brenda Jessome, the victim's mother. "She didn't have any rights. All because she wasn't read her rights."

The judge ruled that a statement taken by Cape Breton Regional Police from O'Dea would not be admitted into evidence at the trial which was scheduled to start next month.

The Crown said Monday that without it they had no case.

"The investigation was conducted before we received the file and based on the evidence that we had, we were relying on the admissibility of the statement that has been ruled inadmissible," said Crown attorney Darcy MacPherson.

The judge says police did not advise O'Dea properly of her right to counsel prior to taking her statement.

"My client is now free after two years where she was under strict conditions," said defence lawyer Peter Mancini. "There's a recognition that she is an innocent person and she will get on with her life."

But Brenda Jessome is not ready to accept that no one will be held accountable for her daughter's death.

On Monday she spoke publicly for the first time since the incident.

"I'm very disappointed because this was all about her not getting her rights read," Jessome said. "When my daughter was on the road, she had no rights. We had no rights. Our rights were taken away."

Jessome says she's hoping to speak to police to try and find out what happened the morning the statement was given -- and why O'Dea wasn't read her rights properly.

"It has destroyed our family," Jessome said. "Our whole world has changed. It doesn't matter if she had of got 20 years, it wasn't going to bring her back."

Jessome says she will remember her daughter as someone who was full of life who was taken away too soon.

Crown prosecutors haven't indicated yet whether there will be an appeal.