A Yellowknife woman who crashed a truck into the front of Sushi Cafe last summer, causing significant damage to the Franklin Avenue restaurant, has been ordered to pay a fine and stay off roads for the next two years.
Kimberly Ongahak, 36, dabbed her eyes with a tissue before apologizing to the restaurant owners in NWT territorial court Friday.
Ongahak, the court heard, was impaired when took a friend’s Ford F150 pickup truck without permission in the early hours of July 15, 2018.
After driving the truck along 54 Street towards Franklin Avenue, Ongahak made a right turn on 53 Street, where she lost control, spinning 180 degrees into the front of Sushi Cafe, according to an agreed statement of facts.
No one was inside the restaurant when the vehicle plowed into the building, and no one was injured as a result.
She did not have a driver’s licence at the time of the crash, the court heard.
Ongahak pleaded guilty to impaired operation of a vehicle in December. She has no prior convictions for driving offences.
Crown prosecutor Billi Wun said the “very serious” crash caused “extensive damage” to the “popular” and “prominent” downtown business, negatively impacting the community as a result.
The restaurant was forced to close its doors for weeks in order to renovate the damaged property.
Wun told the court the Crown expected Sushi Cafe owners to submit a victim impact statement and a restitution request, but said nothing had been filed by Friday morning.
Wun called for a three-month conditional sentence - house arrest - followed by one year probation. The offence triggers a mandatory one-year driving ban.
Ongahak’s lawyer Jay Bran asked Judge Robert Gorin to consider a non-custodial sentence, recommending a fine between $2,000 and $2,500 along with the mandatory driving one-year driving prohibition.
Bran told the court his client has struggled with alcohol addiction since she was in her early teens. Bran said she has taken steps to overcome her addiction, and completed a residential program following the July crash.
Given Ongahak’s lack of a record for driving offences, her guilty plea and background, Judge Gorin ruled no form of imprisonment was necessary. Instead, he ordered Ongahak to pay a $2000 fine, and prohibited her from driving for two years.
She must also stay 10 metres of the restaurant.
Two other charges related to the July accident - dangerous operation and taking vehicle without permission - were withdrawn by the Crown following Ongahak’s formal conviction Friday.