Friends and family again assembled outside a Drumheller, Alta., court, wearing red shirts and carrying photos of a young couple tragically killed over a year ago.
“This is Macy Boyce and Ethan Halford,” said Corey MacPherson, Macy’s mom. “They were an amazing couple and individually they were amazing kids.”
Boyce, 20, and 21-year-old Halford were headed to a cabin when they were rear-ended on Highway 21 near Trochu on June 17, 2022.
According to an agreed statement of facts, 42-year-old Richard Bell had fallen from a ladder while at work that day and consumed alcohol and painkillers, including what he thought was crushed hydromorphone — and later learned was fentanyl.
“Given his injuries, he had been self-medicating with oxycodone and even hydromorphone, which are less dangerous painkillers,” defence lawyer Hugh Sommerville said. “But he wasn’t experienced with fentanyl and that’s what he was given. It wasn’t his fentanyl and clearly he reacted to it far more seriously than he anticipated.”
While Bell’s passengers initially said he appeared “groggy” and “tired,” his driving soon turned “erratic,” with speeds upwards of 200 kilometres per hour.
At one point his Kia swerved into oncoming traffic, forcing another vehicle off the road.
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That was all shortly before he crashed into Boyce and Halford’s vehicle, pushing it into the path of an oncoming semi.
Sentencing will take place in February.
The defence suggests time behind bars could range from three to seven years, while the Crown suggests it should be approaching the double digits.
“Him accepting responsibility for this is a big factor that we have to consider,” Crown prosecutor Ron Simenik said.
While Bell’s guilty pleas spared families and friends the grief of a full trial, they say no sentence will account for the tragic loss.
“Together they were going to do great things,” MacPherson said. “I’m sure we would have walked her down the aisle. And I’m sure we would have seen their legacy continued in some way, other than this way.”
The ME Project, inspired by Macy and Ethan, marks a commitment from thousands of people globally to drive sober.