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Security video captured 2016 crash that rendered Sault College instructor quadriplegic

It will be shown as evidence at the trial of Nicholas Robert Berto
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file photo

The first exhibit entered into evidence yesterday at the trial of Nicholas Robert Berto was a photograph of Paul VanderGriendt.

The image shows VanderGriendt, 27, in a wheelchair.

"This is a sad case," admitted Berto's lawyer, Bruce Willson.

"That poor boy may never walk again."

A little more than two years ago, VanderGriendt was a strapping, sports-loving flight instructor at Sault College's aviation program.

Today, he lives in Toronto, a quadriplegic.

He lost the use of his arms and legs after he was run over by a GM pickup driven by Berto around 2 a.m. on March 12, 2016 at Pine Plaza.

The tragic crash occurred just two days before VanderGriendt was to be interviewed by Air Canada regarding a pilot position with the regional airline Jazz.

Yesterday, a nine-man, three-woman jury started hearing the case against 20-year-old Berto, who's charged with dangerous operation of a motor vehicle causing bodily harm and failing to stop to offer assistance to VanderGriendt.

The jury is expected to view video of the crash captured by a security camera at Food Basics.

Berto and other witnesses will testify about acrimony that broke out around a pool table at the Harp Bar and Grill, where VanderGriendt and his then-girlfriend were attending a retirement party for another Sault College aviation instructor.

The bad feelings spilled into the parking lot, where a fight broke out.

Berto admits he was driving the pickup, which ran at VanderGriendt, his girlfriend, friends and colleagues.

The jury will be told that after the crash, Berto accelerated across the parking lot and ran a red light at McNabb and Pine.

His pickup was later found behind a barn-like building on property owned by Berto's parents, Crown Attorney Wes Beatty said during his opening statement.

"We all know how 10 minutes can change your own life," Berto's lawyer Bruce Willson told the jury, pointing out that while there was an altercation in the parking lot outside the Harp, his client is not charged with assault.

The trial continues today.

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David Helwig

About the Author: David Helwig

David Helwig's journalism career spans seven decades beginning in the 1960s. His work has been recognized with national and international awards.
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