The family of the victim in a fatal hit-and-run in Parksville two years ago continues to wait for a decision in the case.
The sentencing hearing for Ryan John Grob, charged with impaired driving causing the death of Spencer Alexander Moore in 2019, continued on Tuesday, Aug. 24, at the Nanaimo courthouse.
When the sentencing hearing opened on Aug. 12, the Crown requested a six-year jail sentence, with 10 years driving prohibition for Grob, while defence counsel recommended a three-and-a-half to four-year sentence with six years driving prohibition.
The next hearing where Judge Karen Whonnock could deliver Grob’s sentence is scheduled for Wednesday, Sept. 1.
Throughout all of this, the family of the victim say they have had to relive the trauma.
READ MORE: Lawyer: Reckless actions of impaired driver led to fatal 2019 Parksville hit-and-run
The Aug. 24 hearing fell of the second anniversary of Moore’s death.
“Instead of grieving, telling fun stories, we had to listen to defence counsel speak on things that weren’t relevant to Spencer that day - to defend Ryan Grob in killing Spencer with his vehicle,” said Moore’s sister-in-law, Jessica Wallis-Moore, in a social media post on Sunday, Aug. 29.
“Watching Brandon (Moore’s brother) on Aug. 24, 2021, go through a slew of emotions was rough… We were in court on a day, whereas Brandon said, the court didn’t acknowledge the day once. The defence referenced case law as more severe than the killing of my hubby’s brother. That was disgusting,” she said.
In anticipation for the next hearing, Wallis-Moore said she hopes the resulting sentence “does what is necessary.”
“Not for our family, not for how we feel, not for saving court time. I’m hoping she does what’s necessary because… I’m hoping that no one else has to go through this.”
Grob’s alleged passenger on the night in 2019, Travis Zackery Taylor, 32, is scheduled to be sentenced Sept. 30 on a charge of attempted obstruction of justice.