Boat had lights on when it was hit by vessel operated by Linda O'Leary, witness says
A boat carrying a group of stargazers on a central Ontario lake had its lights on when it was struck by another boat captained by Linda O'Leary nearly two years ago, court heard Tuesday from a witness who was also charged in the crash.
Richard Ruh told an Ontario court the boat he was aboard had its navigation lights -- a white overhead light and two green and red lights on the bow -- on at the time of the late-night crash that killed two people.
He said the boat's control panel, which also provides some light, was on as well.
Whether the boat, a 16-seat Nautique, had its lights on has been a point of contention in the case.
Court has viewed security footage of the lake that night, but when asked Tuesday if the clips showed the lights were on, Ruh pointed instead to his own recollection.
"I know that I was on the boat, and the lights were on on my boat," he said.
During cross-examination, however, a lawyer for the defence asked Ruh if he was aware that a police expert's report on the collision came to the conclusion that it occurred because the Nautique did not have the appropriate lights on. The doctor said he was not familiar with the report or its contents.
Linda O'Leary leaves a Parry Sound courthouse on Tues. June 15, 2021 (Mike Arsalides/CTV News)
Court has heard Ruh had taken over operating the boat that belonged to his friend Irv Edwards while they went out stargazing on Lake Joseph with a group on Aug. 24, 2019. The outing was meant to cap off a dinner party hosted by Edwards, court heard.
Ruh, a family doctor who lives in Buffalo, N.Y., but rents a cottage near the lake, said the craft had been still for some time and had its engine off when he saw lights from an oncoming boat.
"I can remember thinking to myself, 'it's coming,"' he testified, noting the other boat appeared to be moving fast.
Seconds later, he said, their boat was struck by another vessel -- a crash that caused the deaths of Gary Poltash, 64, from Florida, and Suzana Brito, 48, from Uxbridge, Ont. Three people were also injured.
O'Leary, who is the wife of celebrity businessman and politician Kevin O'Leary, has pleaded not guilty to a charge of careless operation of a vessel under the Canada Shipping Act.
An agreed statement of facts read in court Monday said she was at the helm when the collision took place. Her husband was also aboard.
The Public Prosecution Service of Canada initially said a conviction could involve a jail sentence and a maximum fine of a million dollars, but later said there was no jail time associated with the charge and the maximum fine is $10,000.
Ruh was also charged with one count of failing to exhibit a navigation light while underway.
He told the court Tuesday he was issued a ticket, which he said he contested for more than a year before paying the $125 fine and signing an attestation of "neither innocence nor guilt."
The doctor said he is also named as a defendant in six lawsuits related to the collision.
In his testimony Tuesday, he recalled scanning the boat to see if anyone was hurt in the aftermath of the crash.
Tearing up at moments, Ruh described seeing Poltash with a "deadly skull fracture" and Brito with blood on her lips. Both had been at the front of the boat, court has heard.
Linda O'Leary and Kevin O'Leary arrive at the American Music Awards at the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles. (THE CANADIAN PRESS/AP, Jordan Strauss/Invision)
The doctor said he administered mouth-to-mouth to Brito and continued to do so as the boat headed back towards the marina. There were a few moments where she managed to breathe on her own, but she quickly needed aid again, he said.
Poltash died when they arrived on shore, while Brito was taken to hospital by ambulance, he said. She died a few days later.
Kevin O'Leary, the former star of the popular CBC show "Dragons' Den," also stars in the ABC show "Shark Tank." He briefly sought the leadership of the federal Conservatives in 2017.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 15, 2021.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Bodies found by U.S. authorities searching for missing B.C. kayakers
United States authorities who have been searching for a pair of missing kayakers from British Columbia since the weekend have recovered two bodies in the nearby San Juan Islands of Washington state.
Amid concerns over 'collateral damage' Trudeau, Freeland defend capital gains tax change
Facing pushback from physicians and businesspeople over the coming increase to the capital gains inclusion rate, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his deputy Chrystia Freeland are standing by their plan to target Canada's highest earners.
'It's discriminatory': Individuals refused entry to Ontario legislature for wearing keffiyeh
Individuals being barred from entering Ontario’s legislature while wearing a keffiyeh say the garment is part of their cultural identity— and the only ones making it political are the politicians banning it.
BREAKING Mounties will not be charged in shooting death of B.C. Indigenous man
Three Mounties in British Columbia will not face charges in the killing of a 38-year-old Indigenous man on Vancouver Island in 2021.
Canada's favourite sport to watch is hockey, survey shows
The 2024 Stanley Cup playoffs have already delivered a fever level of fan excitement in Canada.
Douglas DC-4 plane with 2 people on board crashes into river outside Fairbanks, Alaska
A Douglas C-54 Skymaster airplane crashed into the Tanana River near Fairbanks on Tuesday, Alaska State Troopers said.
Tom Mulcair: Park littered with trash after 'pilot project' is perfect symbol of Trudeau governance
Former NDP leader Tom Mulcair says that what's happening now in a trash-littered federal park in Quebec is a perfect metaphor for how the Trudeau government runs things.
'It's just so hard to let it go': Umar Zameer still haunted by death of Toronto police officer
“It's just so hard to let it go. I mean, everyone is telling me, ‘you have to move on,’ but I know someone is not here [anymore]. So I don't know how I will move on." That’s what Umar Zameer, the man recently acquitted in the death of a Toronto police officer, told CTV News Toronto in a sit-down interview on Tuesday.
NASA hears from Voyager 1, the most distant spacecraft from Earth, after months of quiet
NASA has finally heard back from Voyager 1 again in a way that makes sense. The most distant spacecraft from Earth hadn't sent home any understandable data since last November.