Sarah Mills: The magic of a good, old-fashioned letter
Could letters of old be the way to save Canada Post? In today's Mills Minute, Sarah Mills says there is something rather...
It was an emotional day in Prince Albert court as the man responsible for the deaths of two women, including one who was pregnant, was sentenced to prison.
Jeremiah Jobb received four years in federal prison for a drunk-driving crash that killed Taylor Litwin, 21, and Brandi Lepine, 17.
In June 2013, Jobb struck the vehicle Litwin was driving and Lepine was a passenger in. He was going over three times the speed limit, and was over two-and-a-half times over the legal blood-alcohol limit. He also denied an offer from a designated driver earlier in the evening.
Litwin died on the scene while Lepine, who was pregnant at the time, died shortly after giving birth to daughter Aurora Sky Brandi Ledoux by emergency cesarean section.
Family members of Litwin and Lepine were present in Prince Albert Court of Queen’s Bench as Justice G.N. Allbright sentenced Jobb to his four-year sentence. Jobb will also be banned from operating a vehicle for two years beginning once he is released and was ordered to pay $400 in victim impact surcharges.
Josephine Ledoux, Lepine’s mother and grandmother of baby Aurora, offered a victim impact statement prior to the sentencing. Ledoux spoke of the hardships she has endured since the death of her daughter, saying she has not been able to mourn since all of her energy has been focused on Aurora.
Ledoux pushed through tears to tell Jobb she forgave him and has prayed for him every day, but made it clear it is still a daily struggle for their family.
“Parents should never have to bury children … A piece of my heart was buried with her and I’ll never get that back,” Ledoux said facing in the direction of Jobb. “I want Jeremiah Jobb to think about Aurora every day.”
Outside of court, Ledoux said forgiving Jobb would be something her daughter wanted her to do.
“That was really hard … I had to learn to accept it in my heart and not let my mind speak on its own, but to feel what’s in my heart,” Ledoux said.
Also providing victim impact statements, through victim services, were Lepine’s step-father and Litwin’s father, mother and sister.
Jobb could not muster many words when given an opportunity to speak. Looking into the gallery towards the family members, he told them he prayed every night for them. He then muttered, “I’m sorry,” several times before returning to his seat.
Ledoux said the sentence of four years is appropriate, and is relieved to be moving on from this stage of the healing process.
“The next step is to focus on Aurora for all of us and to move forward and remember Brandi,” she said. “Aurora’s loss is greater than ours because she’ll never get to know her mom. She’ll never know how it feels to have her mom’s love, her mom hold her, kiss her.”
Brandi was only 26-weeks pregnant with Aurora at the time of the crash. At the time of her birth, Aurora was only 2.2 lbs. She experienced minor brain damage and still suffers from frequent seizures.
Despite the circumstances, Ledoux said Aurora has come a long way.
“She smiles when she see us. She does the little things that she tries to do,” Ledoux said. “One day when Aurora grows up and she starts to talk and asks me, ‘Who’s that?’ I’ll tell her who she was.”
Aurora turned two years old in July.
