A Regina man who struck and killed a pedestrian while driving on the Ring Road has been found not guilty of failing to report the fatal crash.
Family and friends of the man reacted joyfully after Judge Leslie Halliday read the verdict Friday in Regina provincial court.
The 27-year-old was charged with failing to report an accident causing the death of 29-year-old Chris Nicolychuk.
Nicolychuk died after he was hit by a pickup truck driven by Bensette on the Ring Road between Albert Street and Argyle Street in June 2013.
Court heard it was raining that night and Nicolychuk, dressed in dark-coloured clothing, was walking in one of the lanes of the Ring Road at the time of the collision.
While he admitted to feeling and hearing the impact, he testified he thought the side mirror of the truck had hit a construction zone marker. He told the court he would have stopped, had he known how serious the collision actually was.
In a lengthy decision, the judge said she wasn’t satisfied beyond a reasonable doubt that Bensette knew or ought to have known that his vehicle hit a person.
Friends of Nicolychuk described him as a “very nice guy” and good friend who loved motorcycles.
