An Edmonton man accused of breaking a woman’s arms with a crowbar in a fit of road rage has pleaded not guilty in court.
On Monday, Jared Matthew Eliasson, 34, entered not guilty pleas to charges of attempted murder, aggravated assault, and possession of an offensive weapon dangerous to the public.
The case dates back to an alleged attack two years ago when Chelsea Schendzierlorz was driving to her home in southeast Edmonton after dropping off her fiancé at work.
The court heard that in the early morning hours of March 7, 2017, Schendzierlorz, who was 34 years old at the time, encountered a silver Pontiac Wave blocking an intersection near Mill Creek Ravine. She honked twice at the vehicle and yelled “Move!” before the car drove forward so she could turn right.
Schendzierlorz testified that she and the driver of the Pontiac Wave exchanged “dirty looks” as she drove past him towards her house, which was located less than a block away.
When she arrived at her home, Schendzierlorz said she spotted the silver car again. At the time, she had been chatting with her father on her cellphone using Bluetooth technology and she could be heard ending the conversation in dash camera video taken from her vehicle.
“I’m gonna let you go Dad,” she said. “I’m gonna have an argument on my hands.”
Schendzierlorz testified that she thought the man was going to start yelling at her for honking her horn at him moments earlier.
“He raised up with both hands and swung down,” she recalled. “My arm dropped. He raised the bar again and said ‘Die b**** die’ and came crashing down again, except on my right arm this time.”
After the alleged attack, Schendzierlorz said the man walked back to his vehicle and drove off. She was treated in hospital for two broken arms, which required multiple surgeries.
Edmonton police later tracked down the silver Pontiac Wave parked outside of Eliasson’s mother’s home where they found a crowbar inside of the vehicle. Eliasson was arrested after police received tips from the public in the days following the alleged attack.
The defence has acknowledged Eliasson was the driver who Schendzierlorz honked at in the intersection, but they said there is not enough evidence to find him responsible for the alleged assault. The accused’s lawyers said there were no fingerprints on the crowbar or blood on the jacket he was wearing that day.
During the first day of trial, Schendzierlorz was asked by the Crown if the individual who attacked her was sitting in court that day. She looked at Eliasson for about 10 seconds before she replied that he was there.
The judge-only trial is expected to last a week.
None of the allegations have been proven in court.
