The family of an Ontario father of three killed earlier this month by an alleged dangerous driver, who was already facing charges in a collision involving the premier, is trying to channel some of their grief and pain into pushing for stronger laws.
Andrew Cristillo, 35, was killed Aug. 3 in a head-on crash in Whitchurch-Stouffville that also left his wife and their three young daughters injured.
It should not have happened, said his brother Jordan Cristillo, and he does not want other people to suffer through the same nightmare.
“When you see every weekend, (headlines like) ‘One dead, two injured,’ these are people’s families that get torn apart and flipped upside down, and we just happen to be one of them,” Cristillo said in a recent interview.
“So now I want to turn this pain into purpose and try to – in honour of my brother, but also in honour of all those other families that are impacted — put an end to this, because if you have dangerous drivers back on the road, you’re just gambling with other people’s lives.”
The three girls are recovering from various physical injuries, but emotionally and spiritually they have a long road ahead, said Cristillo. All three were under the age of seven at the time of the crash, but in the few short weeks since then, two of them have had to mark birthdays without their beloved father.
“I’m confident that they’ll continue to (physically) heal and move forward, but it’s more of the life milestones of looking out when you’re doing a recital and not seeing your father in the crowd, or walking down an aisle, and not having your father to walk you down that aisle,” Cristillo said.
“That’s a life-long sentence that this family has now.”
The family has launched a petition calling for Andrew’s Law, listing ways they want to see dangerous driving penalties strengthened.
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“The first change we’d like to see is, if you’re being charged with dangerous driving, your licence is revoked until you go through your trial, so that we prevent and protect others on the road from dangerous drivers,” Cristillo said.
As well, there should be lifetime driving bans for people convicted of extreme dangerous driving, Cristillo said.
“I don’t know how many more lives need to be ripped apart and families torn apart for the government really to take this seriously,” he said. “If you know you have people that can’t be trusted behind a wheel, don’t allow them, because driving is a privilege. It’s not a right.”
Jaiwin Kirubananthan, 18, was charged with dangerous driving causing death, three counts of dangerous driving causing bodily harm, failing to remain at an accident resulting in death and public mischief in the crash that killed Andrew Cristillo. He is expected to appear in an Oshawa, Ont., court Monday morning.
Police say Kirubananthan is the same person charged after a car hit an Ontario Provincial Police vehicle Premier Doug Ford was travelling in on Highway 401 in January.
Kirubananthan’s lawyer could not comment on the circumstances of either case, but said he believes the dangerous driving laws are sufficient.
“The maximum penalty for dangerous driving causing death is life in prison,” Barry Fox said in an interview. “Can’t get much more drastic or draconian than that.”
There are degrees of dangerous driving, Fox said, and the law already recognizes that with a wide range of possible punishments. When an accused gets released on bail they may have a driving prohibition attached, Fox said, but it isn’t mandatory.
“There has to be room within the ambit of the law to accommodate different types of dangerous driving,” he said. “We just can’t take a hammer and say, ‘You’re off the road for two years (or) five years.”
Ford was asked at a news conference earlier this month if he would support strengthening penalties and said he agrees “absolutely.”
“I think it’s long overdue, so we’ll look at it,” Ford said.
The federal Justice Department can’t comment on the case while it’s before the courts, a spokesperson said, noting that laws around impaired and dangerous driving were strengthened in 2018.
“Among other changes, the penalty for dangerous driving causing death was increased to a maximum penalty of life imprisonment, which is the highest maximum term of imprisonment provided by law,” Katelyn Moores said in a statement.
People who are convicted of dangerous driving causing death can also receive an order prohibiting them from driving for life, Moores said, adding that the government is “always looking at ways to improve the criminal justice system and to ensure the safety of our roads and highways.”
Ford has called for people across Ontario to support the Cristillo family. Not only have they lost a father, but his wife Christina has been battling breast cancer for the past few years.
“That whole uncertainty hasn’t gone away,” Jordan Cristillo said. “We never imagined that my brother wouldn’t be there with her along each of these steps. So it’s hard to fathom how she feels having to face that uncertainty, but also to not have her best friend and partner, who make her laugh during all the appointments, by her side to get through it.”
Cristillo said Christina’s cancer diagnosis made his brother determined to create fun, life-long memories as a family. He was always taking his kids on adventures and being present as a hands-on father, Cristillo said. Andrew was the life of the party who always had people in stitches, he said, adding he will miss his brother’s pranks and at-times inappropriate jokes.
Friends and strangers alike have resoundingly responded to a family GoFundMe fundraiser seeking help for medical and other expenses for the girls. More than $500,000 in donations have poured in.
As well, the family’s change.org petition called Implement Andrew’s Law for Safer Roads has garnered more than 10,000 signatures.
“Whether it’s signing a petition or supporting the GoFundMe, all those acts big and small, is really giving our family strength to keep moving forward,” Cristillo said.
“We’re very grateful for the entire community for having our backs.”
