The legal issues flowing from the Lemon Creek fuel spill in 2013 continue to flood the court system.
The driver of the truck that spilled jet fuel into Lemon Creek in the Slocan Valley in 2013 was found guilty of one charge under the Environmental Management Act in March 2018. He was sentenced to a $20,000 fine in February 2019.
Danny LaSante is appealing both the verdict and the sentence and the hearing will be held in B.C. Supreme Court in Kamloops on Jan. 6.
LaSante was originally charged with eight counts but the judge in his 2018 trial stayed seven of those.
Now the Crown is appealing that staying of those other seven charges.
The Crown’s appeal will be held back to back with LaSante’s appeal on the same court date in Kamloops.
And that’s not all.
Charges against Executive Flight Centre, LaSante’s employer at the time of the spill, were dismissed in Nelson court in September 2017.
The Crown appealed that decision and won in December 2018, opening the way for a trial. But in May 2019, the company got leave from the B.C. Court of Appeal to appeal that decision, and that hearing will take place in Vancouver on Feb. 20.
bill.metcalfe@nelsonstar.com
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