Woman accused of fatal crash that killed mother and daughter released on bail

A 32-year-old woman facing 16 charges related to a fatal head-on crash south of Saskatoon on Oct. 19 has been released on bail.

Brittany Dawn Barry is charged with multiple counts of impaired driving causing death, impaired driving causing bodily harm, dangerous driving causing death, dangerous driving causing bodily harm, criminal negligence causing death and criminal negligence causing bodily harm. is accused.

Police said Barry was drunk while driving his truck with his two children on the wrong side of Highway 11 north of Dundurn around 9:45 p.m. CST.

The truck collided head-on with a small SUV carrying Laura Hannah, 53, and her daughter Laura, 20, killing both. The Hannahs were traveling from the Edmonton area to a family event in Moose Jaw.

Barry and her two children survived with what police described as non-life-threatening injuries.

On Thursday, Barry appeared in Saskatoon provincial court for a bail hearing. He had been detained since the accident.

Wearing a gray tracksuit and using crutches, he entered the prisoner’s box. He stared at the ground throughout the 45-minute hearing before Judge Lisa Watson. Prosecutor Steven Larocque argued for his detention, while defense attorney Brian Pfefferle argued for his release.

“In a situation where someone is presumed innocent, they should be released, and that’s one of the fundamental principles in Canada that individuals should be released from custody pending trial,” Pfefferle said outside the court. he said.

Details of the hearing cannot be published due to the publication ban requested by the defense.

Members of both families were in court for the hearing and wept silently when they heard the details of the crash and its aftermath.

Barry’s release came with conditions that included a $5,000 cash deposit, abiding by a 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. curfew, not drinking or consuming marijuana, not driving and providing a breath sample to police upon request.

He is scheduled to return to court on November 6.