An Ottawa judge handed down a driving ban and a prison sentence for the son of a former Newfoundland premier whose impaired driving cost a close friend his life.
On Wednesday, Judge Lise Maisonneuve sentenced Jack Tobin to serve three years in prison and barred him from driving for seven years.
Tobin was behind the wheel of a pickup truck and performing stunts in an Ottawa parking garage last Christmas Eve when his friend, Alex Zolpis, became pinned under the vehicle.
The 24-year-old died and Tobin later pleaded guilty to impaired driving causing death.
When reading out Tobin's sentence on Wednesday, Maisonneuve said she had weighed his remorse over what happened against an apparent long history of reckless driving.
CTV's Roger Smith reported that Maisonneuve said Wednesday that she found it difficult to come up with an appropriate sentence.
"She said there was no sentence at all that could mitigate the loss of Alex Zolpis," Smith told CTV News Channel from outside the Ottawa courthouse.
Zolpis' surviving parents, sister and girlfriend attended Tobin's sentencing, which took about an hour for the judge to complete.
Emma Roberts, the victim's girlfriend, said she would "never be satisfied" with the sentence the justice system handed down.
"Alex is gone. He was killed by a drunk driver who drove extremely recklessly and we're left to pick up the pieces," Roberts told reporters outside court.
Tobin's lawyer, Norm Boxall, said it was a sad day.
"This really exceptional young man that wanted to do the right thing for everyone in the circumstances, and has pled guilty, and the judge's comments about his promise, I think are there," Boxall said.
"That having been said, it's a very sad day for all concerned. It's a sad day to see a young man go to jail and it's a sad day to reflect on the loss for Alex's family."
Former Newfoundland premier Brian Tobin told reporters that his son had made "a serious mistake" that led to the death of a friend.
With files from The Canadian Press
