TORONTO, ON–When 17-year-old Brandon Majewsi died after being struck by a car in 2012, his family was devastated. Sadly, their pain was only just beginning. Six months after losing Brandon, their son Devon, 23, was found dead in his bed after taking a deadly combination of pills and alcohol. His parents believe Devon was trying to cope with his brother’s death rather than attempting to take his own life.
Brandon Majewski’s family has suffered enough heartbreak to last a lifetime, but now they’ve been blindsided by the unthinkable. Sharlene Simon, the woman who hit Brandon and his two friends, has decided to sue all three for “emotional trauma” as a result of the “incompetent cyclists,” one of whom she killed and another she severely injured. The third boy who was hit only suffered from scratches. Simon is also suing the County of Simcoe for not properly maintaining the road.
Brandon’s mother, Venetta Mlynczyk, vented her disbelief and anger to the Toronto Sun. “She killed my child and now she wants to profit from it? She says she’s in pain? Tell her to look inside my head and she will see pain, she will see panic, she will see nightmares.”
Brandon’s father echoed his ex-wife’s sentiments. “This has ripped our family apart, and now this woman has the gall to try to profit from our dead child she killed? Profit from another boy who was almost crippled?”
Simon’s lawyer, Michael Ellis, attempted to depict his client as an unwilling victim. Ellis told The Daily Mail, “Ms. Simon empathizes with families of the young cyclists for the losses they have sustained as a result of the accident, but she too has been harmed by this event.”
He then tried to whitewash her depravity by throwing out the PTSD card, saying Simon, “relives the terror of this incident every day,” and that she hasn’t been able to go back to her job since she hit the three teenagers. Ellis attempts to shift the blame for the accident to the victims, saying they were “riding in the middle of an unlit road at 1:30am,” on bikes that weren’t “properly illuminated.”
Brandon’s father disputes this, saying all three bikes were outfitted with reflectors that would have made them clearly visible. Brandon was a noted bike enthusiast, and wasn’t likely to ride at night without reflectors. Since the accident, there has been speculation among members of the community that Sharlene’s husband, Jules Simon, had a hand in helping his wife walk away from the accident without any charges.
In an online petition seeking “Justice for Brandon Majewski“, several poignant questions are asked, which have yet to be answered by the Simon’s. Jules Simon, a York Regional Police officer who was part of the team investigating the accident, was driving in a car behind his wife that night. Both failed to call an ambulance for the boys, which is an unexpected reaction from an officer. Suspicions were further aroused by the fact that no breathalyzer test was administered at the scene, which the Simon’s hastily left.
Derek Majewski believes his son was killed as a result of Sharlene Simon’s negligence. A police report reveals she was speeding slightly, going 90km per hour in an 80 zone, but Majewski’s allegations don’t end there.
“Sharlene Simon failed to take reasonable care to avoid a collision which she saw or should have seen was likely to occur,” his claim states. “She operated the motor vehicle while she was intoxicated.” Majewski also believes Simon was talking on her cell phone during the accident because she refused to have it confiscated.
Regardless of the speculation, Simon is guilty for several reasons. Bicyclists always have the right of way, especially on public roads. The fact that she was speeding and hit three individuals suggests she was not paying attention. Then there’s the fact that her husband did not take proper care of the crime scene. The family’s lawyer, Brian Cameron, has countersued Simon to recover the exorbitant medical and funeral costs incurred by the victims and their families.
[about_faith]
3 comments