Charges have been laid against a Burnaby man following a crash more than a year ago that killed one young woman and injured another.
An RCMP release says 44-year-old Burnaby resident Chao Chen faces two charges, including impaired driving causing death, related to the June 2, 2018, collision that killed 19-year-old New Westminster resident Olivia Malcom.
Charges were laid on Aug. 16 and Chen appeared in court and was released on several conditions, including an order to return to provincial court in Surrey on Sept. 24.
Malcom and her 20-year-old friend were standing behind their vehicle which was parked off the shoulder of Hwy. 17A in Delta last June when they were hit from behind by a Jeep.
Malcom died at the scene.She was remembered as a prominent member of the local lacrosse community and an online funding campaign in the months after her death raised more than $100,000 for a bursary to support post-secondary education.
“The whole night is really just about gratitude and kindness,” said Olivia’s mom Bridget Malcom during the June anniversary of the crash. “It’s sharing stories of Olivia and the impact she has left behind with everybody who cares about her.”
The Malcom family presented the Camp Kerry Society with a $5,000 donation to go towards its programs, which support bereaved families, people living with terminal illness and those impacted by death/trauma in the workplace. The society offers a youth program and also hosts bereavement retreats for families who have suffered a loss.
“Olivia absolutely loved the outdoors,” Malcom said. “For her, to be able to give back and send these youth to camps, where they can deal with their grief and things like that, we just thought was very, very fitting.”
- With files from Canadian Press
