The Tribune

By NICO SCAVELLA

Tribune Staff Reporter

nscavella@tribunemedia.net

THE man whose truck mowed into a crowd during last year’s Labour Day Parade will stand trial in 2020 over allegations that he negligently caused the death of four women and injured eight other people.

Travis Lamar Sawyer will stand trial before Justice Gregory Hilton on August 10 of next year charged with four counts of manslaughter by negligence and eight additional counts of negligently causing harm stemming from the June 1, 2018 incident. A case management hearing has been set for August 8 of this year.

Sawyer’s $8,000 bail, granted to him by Justice Bernard Turner, continues until that time.

Last month, the Silver Gates resident pleaded not guilty to all 12 counts when formally arraigned before Justice Turner. It is alleged that on June 1, 2018, Sawyer, by means of unlawful harm, negligently caused the deaths of 41-year-old Tabitha Haye, 48-year-old Tami Patrice Gibson, 51-year-old Kathleen Fernander and 55-year-old Dianna Gray-Ferguson. 

It is also alleged that he negligently caused harm to eight other persons – Annabelle Gibson, Allez Lightbourne, Christine Adderley, Kimberlin Johnson, Kyren Johnson, Makeba Ford, Ruth Stuart and Philippa Forbes.

Shortly after 10am on the date in question, participants of the annual Labour Day parade were walking north on East Street in the vicinity of Shirley Street, when a green Ford F150 truck, which was a part of the parade, descended the hill towards Shirley Street.

The vehicle, which at the time had no driver according to initial police reports, ran into a number of people who were a part of the parade, resulting in them receiving injuries. The vehicle came to a stop on hitting a Nissan vehicle, parked in a nearby parking lot.

Two people were pronounced dead at the scene, while 26 others were taken to hospital. Two women later died at the Princess Margaret Hospital, which was forced into mass casualty mode.