A West Vancouver speed demon had a strong drink in his system and two children in the back seat of his car when he smashed into the back panel of an Audi Spyder convertible on Aug. 23, 2014 after dangerously overtaking 10 other cars on the wrong side of the road.
Immediately after the impact, the driver was hit so hard by hot gas-filled airbags that deployed in his Mercedes, the three-point logo was imprinted into his arm.
Crown counsel Arlene Loyst read those details from witness reports about the crash in North Vancouver provincial court Tuesday during a sentencing hearing for Andrew Alan Hromyk, a 50-year-old West Vancouver father of two.
Hromyk is being sentenced after entering a guilty plea in court to a charge of dangerous driving. He was originally charged with the more serious counts of impaired driving causing bodily harm and dangerous driving causing bodily harm. Crown counsel intends to drop those charges in exchange for the guilty plea to the less serious offence.
Witness Chris Barrett described the Mercedes passing his vehicle on the narrow, winding stretch of Marine Drive “like they were standing still . . . ripping down the opposite side of the road, passing everybody,” said Loyst.
Another driver, Stephan Diett, saw the Mercedes swerve to narrowly miss two motorcycles, said Loyst, telling police, “It appeared to be completely out of control.”
North Vancouver’s Bassam Moubarak was heading east in the Audi when he saw the Mercedes coming at him in his lane, fishtailing, with smoke coming from the rear tires.
Moubarak only had time to yell, “Oh my God!”, said Loyst, before his vehicle was hit on the rear passenger side by the Mercedes, sending the Audi into a spin and causing it to hit a telephone pole before ending up in a hedge.
Nearby resident Steven Ross ran outside after hearing a loud bang, to where the Mercedes had come to a stop, near 31st Street. The whole front end of the vehicle was smashed in and the car was leaking fluid, Ross told police. Ross reported that a man who had been a passenger in the car quickly whisked the children away from the accident scene, said Loyst, while Hromyk appeared to stagger and be unable to stand up straight.
Another witness, Devon Ashworth, arrived at the accident scene and confronted Hromyk when he saw him tossing what Ross believed were bottles into the bushes, said Loyst. Ashworth told Hromyk, “’I’m putting you under citizens’ arrest,’” and threw him to the sidewalk.
When police arrived on the scene, one of the officers noted Hromyk appeared drunk and smelled strongly of liquor. Hromyk failed a roadside breath demand and was taken back to the station, where he blew Breathalyzer readings of .130 and .120 about three and a half hours after the crash, said Loyst.
The prosecutor asked the judge to impose a three-year driving ban on Hromyk and a one-year conditional sentence, with house arrest for the first six months.
She noted Hromyk’s driving record includes 24 speeding tickets and six previous 24-hour roadside suspensions.
Hromyk’s defence lawyer Mark Jette asked the judge to consider a less stringent conditional sentence, saying if Hromyk was placed under house arrest for six months it would have a significant impact on his business as an investment manager, which requires frequent travel.
Jette asked the judge to consider a conditional sentence of six to 12 months that would only involve house arrest for three months, noting that Hromyk is of otherwise good character and has already been humiliated by publicity about his actions.
The sentencing hearing will continue June 17.
