TORONTO -- A man charged in a Brampton, Ont. crash that claimed the lives of a mother and her three young daughters two months ago has been denied bail.
The decision was made Friday following a two-day bail hearing for 20-year-old Brady Robertson, who has been charged with four counts of dangerous driving causing death in connection with the June crash.
Karolina Ciasullo, 37, and her three daughters – Klara, 6, Lilianna, 3, and Mila, 1 – were killed shortly after noon on June 18 after their Volkswagen Atlas was struck by a blue Infiniti G35 near Torbram Road and Countryside Drive.
Police previously said that the three girls were in their child seats in the back of the SUV when they were struck by the eastbound Infiniti, which was travelling through the intersection at a high rate of speed.
The driver of the Infiniti, later identified by police as Robertson, was taken into custody less than a week later and charged in connection with the devastating crash.
Robertson is also facing one count of dangerous operation of a motor vehicle in connection with a separate crash two days prior to the collision that killed Ciasullo and her daughters.
He has been held at the Maplehurst Correctional Complex in Milton since his arrest.
While Robertson’s bail hearing was held virtually due to the COVID-19 pandemic, dozens of protesters from the group Justice 4 Families, along with the friends and family of the victims, gathered outside the Brampton courthouse calling for stricter sentences and parole eligibility for serious driving convictions.
The demonstrators, who also held a protest at Queen’s Park over the weekend, carried signs with photos of the Ciasullo family that read “time for change,” and “not one more.”
"Bail denied is a big decision. The judge didn’t take it lightly," Jillian McLeod, one of the organizers of the protest said. "We are more than thrilled."
Wearing T-shirts displaying a photo of the Ciasullo family, Liliana and Kazimierz Lugiewicz, the parents of Karolina Ciasullo, spoke outside the courthouse on Friday afternoon.
They said they are satisfied with the judge's decision and believe the streets will be safer as a result.
"We are not going to get our kids back, never," Kazimierz Lugiewicz said.
Robertson's next court appearance is scheduled for Sept. 18.
