MANDEL: Why was alleged dangerous driver still behind the wheel?

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Surely, they won’t again release an accused dangerous driver now facing new charges of killing a father of three.

Or so you would think. But that’s hardly a sure thing.

A bail hearing was held in Oshawa Wednesday for 18-year-old Jaiwin Kirubananthan, who was arrested Aug. 3 after a head-on collision, on Hwy. 48 in Whitchurch-Stouffville, that killed Andrew Cristillo and injured his three daughters. The OPP said the driver fled the scene but was found and arrested a short time later.

Now facing one count of dangerous driving causing death, three counts of dangerous driving causing bodily harm, failing to remain at the scene of an accident resulting in death, and public mischief, Kirubananthan’s release is being opposed by the Crown.

But why was he even behind the wheel in the first place?

Kirubananthan is the same young driver charged in January with dangerous driving after a car travelling westbound on Hwy 401 sideswiped an OPP SUV carrying Premier Doug Ford as he left the Darlington Nuclear Station. “We were just driving straight, and next thing we know, we got hammered, just hammered,” Ford told reporters after the Jan. 8 incident.

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The accused has not had his charges tested in court in either this current crash or the one involving the premier.

The speculation online is that the driver in both incidents was “swimming” or “cutting up” — a dangerous trend where motorists weave through traffic at high speed with some Instagram accounts dedicated to videos of the frightening practise on the 401 and other highways.

What’s shocking is that Kirubananthan wasn’t even suspended from driving or held for a bail hearing at the time of the Ford crash. Instead, as CTV reports, a Whitby OPP officer simply gave him a Form 9 appearance notice to come to court when his trial is held in December.

He’s not that lucky this time.

A standard publication ban covers the evidence heard at Kirubananthan’s bail hearing where he was fighting to go home.

His alleged victim will never get that chance.

In a heartrending Gofundme post, his widow Christina described how her “best friend and love of her life” was killed in the head-on crash while she and her three daughters were rushed to hospital.  “Our hearts will always carry a void that can never be filled,” she wrote.

“This tragedy was not just an accident — it’s the result of someone else’s reckless actions. The other driver (allegedly) fled the scene and is under criminal investigation. While justice is being pursued, our focus now is survival physically, emotionally, and financially.”

Their daughters Leah, 7, Chloe, 6, and Ella, 4, were being treated at Sick Kids for life-altering injuries, she said. “The girls are doing well and will be going home soon! I will update you with more information as it presents itself,” she wrote in a post a few days ago.

And that is wonderful news.

So far, more than $407,000 has been raised for her girls to provide “the stability, care, and opportunities” their father wanted for them. “His greatest wish was for his family to be safe, happy, and cared for, and he worked tirelessly to give our daughters the best life and future he possibly could.”

But there is still so much suffering ahead — the death of the 35-year-old husband and father is heartbreaking enough but this senseless collision has also taken away her main support while she battles breast cancer.

Meanwhile, the young driver accused of causing this unimaginable pain remains in custody while Justice of the Peace Karen Valentine has reserved her bail decision until Friday.

mmandel@postmedia.com