A Coquitlam man who was driving a car when it crashed, killing one passenger and injuring another, pleaded guilty this week to two charges.
Spencer Brian Berg pleaded guilty to one count of driving with a blood-alcohol level over .08 causing death and one count of driving with a blood-alcohol level over .08 causing bodily harm, stemming from a crash in October 2009 in Surrey.
Shortly after 2 a.m. on Oct. 11, 2009 — Thanksgiving Sunday — RCMP responded to a single-vehicle collision involving a four-door Honda sedan on 152 Street near 92 Avenue in Surrey.
Witnesses told police the driver lost control of the car and slammed into a hydro pole. The force of the impact ripped the vehicle in half.
Berg and the front-seat passenger were taken to hospital with non-life threatening injuries but the rear-seat passenger, Ryan Grant, a 19-year-old Coquitlam resident, was pronounced dead at the scene.
Police said at the time high speed and alcohol were being investigated as contributing factors in the collision.
Berg is scheduled to appear before a judge for a sentencing hearing Aug. 18.
gmckenna@tricitynews.com