Tears were shed as a Vernon man who fatally struck local teen Lynza Henke with his truck in a downtown crosswalk was sentenced for inattentive driving Wednesday afternoon.
Gregg Veinpel pleaded guilty to driving a vehicle without due care and attention at the Vernon courthouse, which on Dec. 10 was filled with family and friends of 15-year-old Henke, who was fatally struck by Veinpel’s Ford F-150 while crossing Highway 97 at 30th Avenue on July 20, 2024.
Crown counsel Margaret Cissell and defence lawyer Anthony Robinson made a joint submission in provincial court to have Veinpel, 61, pay a $1,400 fine, plus a victim fine surcharge. A driving prohibition was not sought.
On the date of the offence, Henke had stepped off the curb at the intersection as she was making her way from Freshco, where she was buying ingredients for fudge, and heading back to Vernon Teach and Learn, her family’s business. At the same time, Veinpel was making a right-hand turn.
Henke was struck by the front-right corner of Veinpel’s truck, which may have been going less than 10 kilometres per hour, Cissell told the court. She was knocked to the ground and the truck ran over her body. She suffered a head injury which, after weeks in hospital and the removal of a piece of her skull, proved fatal.
Cissell said the incident stands as a “reminder of the risk of driving we often fail to recognize in our daily driving life.”
Numerous victim impact statements from various members of Henke’s family were read in court.
Cissell read a lengthy impact statement from father Trevor Henke, who offered a full account of the events leading up to and following his daughter’s death.
Trevor wrote that his family had “just been devastated” by news in June that Henke’s mother, Lynella, had fourth-stage cancer. Following this “upending” news, the family cared for Lynella and worked to keep the business going. Lynza took over making fudge for the business.
“It was devastating, I didn’t see it coming,” Trevor wrote of the moment the police came to the store and informed him of the incident.
Trevor detailed visits to Kelowna General Hospital and then B.C. Children’s Hospital in Vancouver, as well as days spent in waiting rooms and seeing their middle daughter hooked up to tubes and life-support machines.
After being able to breathe on her own for about a week, a relapse required a breathing tube again, Trevor wrote. Her condition continued to worsen. She passed away on Aug. 15, 2024.
“Oh, I miss her so much,” Trevor wrote.
Henke’s older sister submitted a heartfelt victim impact statement to the court.
“I didn’t just lose my sister, I lost a person who held my entire world together,” the sister wrote.
“We played dolls together as kids, but we also stood together while caring for our mother when she was dying. We held each other up. When mom was diagnosed, we made a pact to support one another through everything, especially as we shared the responsibility of taking care of our nine-year-old sister,” Henke’s sister continued in her written statement, which was read by Cissell. “She kept that promise every day. Her death didn’t only break my heart, it shattered my entire life. The spark I once had is gone. I died that day.”
Henke’s younger sister’s victim impact statemement was also read aloud.
“I will never ride bikes again with her and race to the mailbox, play soccer, have snowball fights, or go sledding,” her statement read. “I love Lynza, I think of her every day.”
Robinson told the court that Veinpel’s vision had been obstructed by the A-pillar of his truck, blocking Henke from Veinpel’s view, as was determined by a police forensic collision analysis. He admitted that Veinpel should have done a shoulder check before making the right-hand turn.
The defence lawyer said his client’s moral blameworthiness falls at the low end of the spectrum.
“The incident has had a significant impact on (Veinpel) emotionally and psychologically, as you can see today in court,” Robinson said.
Indeed, throughout the hearings, Veinpel could be heard sobbing quietly. At one point a second box of tissues was handed to him.
When it came time for Veinpel to address the court, he offered the following words:
“There are no words that can adequately express my grief and regret for the loss of Lynza. I take full responsibility for my actions and the tragic consequences they have caused. I am haunted by the thought of the pain and suffering that Trevor, the late Lynella (and Henke’s sisters) must be going through.
“I am deeply sorry for the pain I have caused and will carry the weight of this tragedy for the rest of my life,” he continued. Veinpel then turned to face the family members in the gallery and thanked them for the compassion they’ve shown he and his wife since the incident.
Cissell asked Justice Michelle Daneliuk to consider as aggravating factors Veinpel’s lack of care given the “copious” amount of foot traffic in the area at the time of the incident, as well as the “horrific consequences” of Henke’s death.
Mitigating factors put forward included Veinpel’s very early guilty plea, his acknowledgement of harm, his driving record which had only three dated speeding tickets from at least 16 years ago, and lack of any alcohol or drug influence.
Cissell added the incident was a “fleeting moment” of inattention behind the wheel.
Justice Daneliuk, in an unconventional turn, decided to make her sentence Wednesday but also take time to offer her written reasons another day, something she said she had never done before. She reasoned that the Henke family and all involved were owed a decision that same day, but wanted to take the time to articulate her reasons with an account of the victim impact statements she’d heard Wednesday.
Veinpel has 90 days to pay the $1,400 fine and the victim surcharge.
It was discussed in court that a driving prohibition is typically sought in cases where the circumstances are more egregious than the ones displayed in Veinpel’s case, or when the offender has a poorer driving history than Veinpel.