Accused seeks to withdraw guilty plea in case related to fatal Kelowna crash

A Kelowna man involved in a fatal 2019 crash is attempting to withdraw a guilty plea.

Ronald William Thomson pleaded guilty to the charge of dangerous driving causing death on Nov. 2, 2020, relating to an Aug. 13, 2019, crash that killed 30-year-old Devon Marock, from Burnaby.

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At the time of the guilty plea, two earlier offences under the Motor Vehicle Act, driving without due care and attention, and failing to obey a traffic control signal, were stayed.

The BC Prosecution Service said the matter was then adjourned to June 18 for sentencing.

“Before that could happen, Mr. Thomson indicated that he wanted to withdraw his plea. The Crown is opposed to the application,” Dan McLaughlin of the BC Prosecution Service said in an email.

Now a hearing for that is being scheduled.

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Thomson allegedly ran a red light and T-boned Marock’s 2006 Honda Accord.

In the immediate aftermath, Kelowna RCMP sent out a press release saying the collision occurred at Harvey Avenue and Cooper Road, and involved an eastbound Cadillac SUV on Harvey and a northbound Honda Accord on Cooper.

Police say the driver of the Honda, a 30-year-old man from Burnaby, was taken to hospital and pronounced dead. The driver of the Cadillac was reported as having minor injuries.

The crash scene was closed for several hours.

“Drugs and alcohol are not factors in this crash,” said Kelowna RCMP Cpl. Megan Foster in a press release in the days following the Aug. 13, 2019 crash.