Drunk-driving victim’s parents meet with justice minister, want passenger in killer’s truck to face charges

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This article was published 04/03/2024 (551 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A Winnipeg couple whose daughter was killed by a drunk driver in 2022 are calling for an independent review of the prosecution’s decision to not pursue charges against a passenger in the truck that ended her life.

Karen and Doug Reimer met with Justice Minister Matt Wiebe Monday to discuss the possibility the province will revisit the decision involving someone they say is just as culpable as the driver was in the May 2022 death of their 24-old-daughter Jordyn.

“This was criminal behavior and there should be accountability for it,” said Karen Reimer.

Jordyn Reimer, acting as a designated driver, was on her way to pick up a friend shortly after 2 a.m., when Tyler Scott Goodman, driving a truck, blew through a stop sign at 108 km/h and slammed into her vehicle at Kildare Avenue West and Bond Street, which has a posted speed limit of 50 km/h.

Goodman had been drinking with friends at Joe’s Pandora Inn bar in Transcona and told police he had consumed nine or 10 beers throughout the night.

Court heard an acquaintance confronted Goodman as he was leaving the bar, attempting to stop him from driving.

A friend (the passenger in Goodman’s truck) took Goodman’s keys and told the woman he would drive, but Goodman ultimately ended up behind the wheel.

In November Goodman was sentenced to seven years — six for impaired driving causing death and one for leaving the scene. He pleaded guilty to both counts.

In December Goodman, who is being held at Stony Mountain Institution, appealed the sentence.

Karen Reimer said at the time of the investigation police recommended charges be laid against the passenger for criminal negligence causing death, but the Crown declined to move forward.

“We were just very unhappy about that,” she said. “(The passenger) needs to be held criminally accountable for his actions because he set the whole thing in motion.”

“There’s a message to be sent. Not only should impaired drivers be held accountable, but passengers too, especially if they have an overt role.”– Karen Reimer

The Monday meeting was the second between Wiebe and the Reimers. The family has filed a complaint with the director of Victims Services and met with the deputy ombudsman to file a complaint against prosecutors involved in the case.

They have also filed a complaint with the auditor general because “it’s frustrating to not be heard and it’s frustrating to have no power,” Karen Reimer said.

“We’re looking for anybody with power that is going to help us do what should have been done right from the beginning.”

The review wouldn’t be an unprecedented move, as then-justice minister Kelvin Goertzen last year asked prosecutors from another province to look at Manitoba’s decision not to lay charges against disgraced fashion mogul Peter Nygard in Winnipeg.

The Saskatchewan prosecutors recommended charges and Nygard, now a convicted rapist, is facing counts of sexual assault and unlawful confinement in Manitoba.

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In an emailed statement Monday, Wiebe said he couldn’t comment on specifics as Goodman’s case is before the courts.

“However, what is clear is that our government needs to continue to be stringent and move the needle on impaired driving. I would like to thank the Reimers for their advocacy and for attempting to take this personal tragedy and turn it into something good,” the statement read.

Karen Reimer said the ask is not only to bring justice for her daughter, but to set a precedent for other families.

“There’s a message to be sent. Not only should impaired drivers be held accountable, but passengers too, especially if they have an overt role.”

nicole.buffie@freepress.mb.ca

Nicole Buffie
Multimedia producer

Nicole Buffie is a reporter for the Free Press city desk. Born and bred in Winnipeg, Nicole graduated from Red River College’s Creative Communications program in 2020 and worked as a reporter throughout Manitoba before joining the Free Press newsroom as a multimedia producer in 2023. Read more about Nicole.

Every piece of reporting Nicole produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the Free Press‘s tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press’s history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates.