No charges in fatal motorcycle crash, drive for road safety continues By: Chris Kitching Posted: 5:34 PM CDT Monday, Jun. 12, 2023 Last Modified: 8:02 AM CDT Tuesday, Jun. 13, 2023 Updates

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A widow is pushing for accountability and safety improvements on Manitoba’s roads, after learning charges will not be laid in the 2022 crash that killed her husband.

Winnipeg resident Denis L’Heureux was thrown off his motorcycle and hit by an oncoming pickup truck when his bike slid on wet mud that covered a section of Provincial Road 311, northeast of Steinbach.

“This can’t happen to somebody else. This is a bigger problem than just that one day,” said his wife, Lise Léveillé, who witnessed the fatal Sept. 24 crash.

“I want to make sure change is coming. I should be able to travel on a provincial road in a safe manner, and everybody should be able to get home to their family.”

Léveillé, who was also riding in a group of motorcyclists that day, said the “layers” of mud were left by farm equipment and made wet and slippery by rainfall.

She was surprised and disappointed when she was recently informed of the decision not to pursue charges, which was based on an opinion from the Crown.

Léveillé had hoped someone would be held accountable for the mud on the road. “At least some kind of fine should be handed out,” she said.

Léveillé will meet with representatives of the Crown and RCMP in Winnipeg on Thursday to learn more about the decision.

“I want to know the why, and once I know the why, where do we go from here?”

Neither authority commented on the decision Monday.

“I should be able to travel on a provincial road in a safe manner, and everybody should be able to get home to their family.”–Lise Léveillé

L’Heureux was leading a group of motorcyclists around 1 p.m. It was his 45th birthday. His 12-year-old daughter was a passenger on his bike.

Five of six experienced riders in the group, including Léveillé, lost control on the mud slick, which looked like asphalt as they approached it, she said.

L’Heureux’s family and friends believe the crash could have been avoided if the mud had been scraped off the road or if signs had been posted to warn all road users of the hazard.

A section of Manitoba’s Highway Traffic Act makes it illegal to deposit or not remove anything such as mud that could cause injury.

A spokesman for the province said nine tickets were issued in 2022 and 23 were handed out in 2021. A conviction can carry a fine of up to $2,000.

Offences resulting in death can result in a jail sentence of up to two years.

To prevent similar collisions, Léveillé wants the Manitoba government to require warning signs and lights to be posted when mud or other debris poses a danger to all road users.

She said there should be effective enforcement and significant fines if someone fails to clear debris in a timely manner. Léveillé also wants the province to make it easier for the public to report debris on a highway.

On May 23, a 26-year-old woman from Steinbach was killed when she tried to avoid debris on Highway 52 in the Rural Municipality of La Broquerie.

RCMP said she lost control of her vehicle, which collided with oncoming pickup truck.

Manitoba has monitored a pilot project in the Township of Russell, Ont., which uses road signs to warn drivers about mud on roads next to farmland.

The Coalition of Manitoba Motorcycle Groups is working with the province to form a committee that will study the issue and recommend potential safety measures or new or updated legislation, said board member and treasurer Doug Houghton.

“We feel proper signage could avoid (collisions) like this.”–Doug Houghton

“We feel proper signage could avoid (collisions) like this,” he said. “It’s not just a matter for motorcyclists. It can affect everybody.”

Houghton (who was friends with L’Heureux) was disappointed when he learned no one will be charged in last fall’s crash.

He said some of the coalition’s board members met with Manitoba Transportation and Infrastructure Minister Doyle Piwniuk and Agriculture Minister Derek Johnson to discuss their concerns after the crash.

Houghton is hoping to have representatives from Crown auto insurer MPI and the agricultural and heavy construction industries on the committee.

Léveillé wants a seat on the committee to ensure her family is represented.

The spokesman for the province said Manitoba Transportation and Infrastructure (MTI) is “committed” to working with the coalition and others to come up with possible solutions or safety improvements.

Keystone Agricultural Producers spokesman Colin Hornby said the issue was discussed at a farm safety advisory council meeting May 24. KAP, too, wants to have a representative on the committee.

“We are definitely interested in discussing that further,” said Hornby. “Anything we can do to help make the road safer for everybody, including producers… is always a good thing.”

Chris Lorenc, president and chief executive officer of the Manitoba Heavy Construction Association, said contractors are already required to put up signs before and after a work zone.

They must also keep a road or highway’s surface in safe condition.

“We already have contractual obligations, which are enforced by inspectors,” said Lorenc.

He said MPI has public awareness campaigns which encourage motorists to drive to road conditions.

“It’s a collective responsibility,” said Lorenc.

chris.kitching@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @chriskitching