William Goosman outside Nanaimo provincial court in the fall of 2020 after pleading guilty to dangerous driving causing death. (Ian Holmes/NanaimoNewsNOW)

By NanaimoNewsNOW Staff

unforgettable loss

Driver in fatal Gabriola Island crash sentenced to 2 years in jail

Feb 23, 2021 | 12:37 PM

NANAIMO — An oft-delayed dangerous driving causing death court case has ended with a two year jail sentence.

William Sydney Goosman, 49, was sentenced to jail in a provincial correctional facility during an emotionally charged sentencing hearing on Tuesday, Feb. 23 in BC Supreme Court in Nanaimo.

Honourable Justice Robin Baird accepted a joint submission from the Crown and defense for what he called an “abysmal” offence which causing a “cruel, violent and completely avoidable” death.

The agreed statement of facts said Goosman crossed both lanes of Berry Point Rd. on Gabriola Island to hit Jay Dearman around 8:30 a.m. on Jan. 24, 2018 before crashing into the ditch.

Dearman, a beloved father of two daughters and member of the Gabriola Volunteer Fire Dept., was out jogging with his wife and a friend on the shoulder of the road at the time. He was pronounced dead in hospital despite life-saving attempts at the scene.

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Many witnesses noticed Goosman’s worn-down van traveling erratically that morning at speeds upwards of 100 kilometres per hour while swerving all over the roads and through a school zone.

A sleep-deprived Goosman told police on scene he’d consumed two glasses of wine about two hours prior to the crash.

A further test showed a blood alcohol reading of 0.028, under the legal limit.

The offender believed medication he was taking interfered with his ability to safely drive.

Dearman’s widow Suzanne made direct eye contact with Goosman during an emotional victim impact statement she read out in court.

“I’m tired of running the risk of seeing you every time I go out. No matter what happens here today nothing can ever bring Jay back to us and nothing will fill the hole his absence has left.”

Suzanne Dearman said she lost her job due to the trauma caused by the crash and continually has flashbacks of Jay’s body lying on the road.

“I’m unable to sleep properly and feel exhausted most days. We used to find such joy in socializing with friends and family and now I find myself unable to do so in any real way.”

She questioned what Goosman had done in the nearly three years after the crash before he entered a late guilty plea in late November, 2020 to avoid a BC Supreme Court trial.

“What were you doing when I was picking out Jay’s coffin? What were you doing when I had to call our daughters and tell them their dad had been killed? Or when I had to call his mom and dad and tell them their son was dead and listen to their screaming over the phone?”

Justice Baird said he was profoundly moved by Suzanne’s address.

Goosman didn’t have a criminal record but past issues with substance abuse, including a longtime heroin addiction, were referenced in his pre-sentence report.

Justice Baird said Goosman’s punishment is at at the lower end of the sentencing range and his jail tenure could have been longer.

“A lot of people that come before me in circumstances such as this have long criminal records and they get far higher sentences. Mr. Goosman here doesn’t have any history here of flaunting the law…He lived an unremarkable, quiet life by all accounts.”

Baird recommended Goosman serve his sentence at the Nanaimo Correctional Centre to take advantage of the Guthrie House substance abuse program.

“All I can do now is express the hope that you’ll take this rehabilitative opportunity seriously, that you will do honour and justice to the Dearman family by pulling yourself together and making yourself a fit member of our community,” Justice Baird said.

Goosman, dressed in a black hoodie and cargo pants, briefly addressed the court.

“I want to apologize for what happened. I feel absolutely horrible about it. I want to do whatever I can to make up for it,” Goosman said.

Goosman will serve 18 months probation after his jail sentence, which includes no drugs, alcohol or contact with Suzanne Dearman. He’s barred from driving a further five years after his release.

The maximum penalty for dangerous driving causing death is 14 years in prison.

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