A 43-year-old man from Aurora, Ont., has been found guilty of dangerous driving causing bodily harm and failing to stop at an accident in connection with a Highway 11 crash three years ago north of Parry Sound. Ontario Court Justice Peter Tetley read his decision in the case in court hearing July 31 in Parry Sound. The driver, Gregory Monteath, claimed he thought he hit an animal in the June 20, 2023, collision. He testified that at first, he thought his Silverado pickup truck hadn’t been seriously damaged in the crash, which took place just south of Hill Valley Road around 7:10 a.m. In fact, he had rear-ended a Harley-Davidson motorcycle being driven by Diane Laliberte-Rainville, a registered nurse who worked as a director at a long-term care home in North Bay. Was headed to North Bay Laliberte-Rainville had just left her home in Sundridge to head to work when she was struck by Monteath’s pickup, which was travelling at 156 km/h at the time of impact. Monteath was on his way to a meeting in New Liskeard, having left his East Gwillimbury home around 3:30 a.m. While he admitted to sending messages using two cellphones in his truck, he testified that they were hands-free devices and denied being distracted by them before the crash. He testified that he didn’t see anything after the collision and kept driving because he believed it was a minor crash. Laliberte-Rainville had to be airlifted to Health Sciences North in Greater Sudbury to be treated for devastating injuries. She had a brain bleed, fractured vertebrae, numerous other bone fractures, a dislocated shoulder, ligament damage and much of her skin was torn from her right hand. Injuries to her right arm and hand caused permanent disability and she continues to have significant mobility issues. For his part, Monteath testified that he thought he “may have struck an animal.” While he was aware of an impact to the front of his vehicle, he kept driving because he didn’t think his truck had been damaged. Call OPP to report He drove for a time before getting off Highway 11 at Lindsay’s Hill Road to inspect the damage. Monteath called Ontario Provincial Police at 7:31 a.m. to report that he believed he had “hit an animal.” But he said the damage was less than $2,000 and no other vehicle was involved and was told it was a non-reportable crash. He then looked up an alternative way home on his GPS and began driving using secondary routes. But his truck broke down near Old Forestry Road near Trout Creek. He was later arrested after his vehicle was inspected by an OPP sergeant. In his decision, Justice Tetley said the evidence showed that Monteath “failed to keep a proper lookout, was distracted or was simply not paying attention immediately prior to the collision.” “Mr. Monteath was also observed to have operated the pickup truck at high speed, and in an aggressive manner, leading up to the point of impact,” Tetley said. “It would not be unreasonable to conclude that the magnitude or force of impact in the collision, and the sound it would generate, would have alerted Mr. Monteath to the fact that he had struck another vehicle and not a wild animal.” There was significant damage to his truck and had he checked his surroundings after the collision, the judge said that “it is difficult to imagine that he would not have seen the prone body of Diane Laliberte-Rainville in the vicinity …” Evidence at trial showed that the motorcycle would have been propelled ahead of Monteath’s truck and within his sight. And it was not a small motorcycle – it weighed 1,200 pounds, the rear wheelbase was four feet wide and the bike was 8 ½ feet long. “It is concluded that the accused could not have reasonably conflated or confused the Harley for a wild animal,” Tetley said. Monteath also claimed that he was returning home after the collision because he was shaken up – but his truck broke down north of the collision scene “in the opposite direction to where he purported to be heading.” The judge concluded that the evidence proved that Monteath knew he had struck a vehicle and his decision to take an alternate route was part of his attempt to distance himself from the collision scene “to avoid apprehension and accountability for the collision.” Monteath will be back in court Jan. 15, 2027, for sentencing.
