'Cars are not toys': Parents of Vaughan siblings killed in collision call for change to driving culture

'Do you understand how quickly everything can go wrong in just a few seconds?... My children lost their lives because of a few moments of selfish stupidity,' father says following sentencing of teen guilty of dangerous driving causing death

Newmarkettoday.ca
April 5, 2022
Elizabeth Keith

The parents of the two children killed in a collision in Vaughan last year are sharing their story in hopes of creating a culture of safe driving in Ontario.

The family spoke following the sentencing of the 17-year-old who pleaded guilty to two counts of dangerous driving causing death and one count of dangerous driving causing bodily harm in December 2021. He appeared at the Newmarket Courthouse on April 4 where he was sentenced to 12 months in an open custody youth facility, six months community supervision, a six- year driving prohibition, and one year of probation.

The collision on May 16, 2021 claimed the lives of 10-year-old Anaya and four-year-old Jax Chaudhari, who were struck, along with a neighbour, while playing at the end of their driveway. The driver from Richmond Hill was 16 at the time.

“The five of us were in our comfort zone, in our front yard. We were at ease, we felt safe and unexpecting of the horror that was about to unfold in front of our eyes. We heard a speeding car and immediately saw it flying into our two children and neighbour. A few seconds -- just a few seconds -- transformed this day, shattered our family and changed our entire existence," their mother, Binta Patel, said.

Following the sentencing she told media outside the courthouse that they knew they would never feel a sense of justice.

“We have lost faith in the systems that are supposed to keep us safe. We don’t know if any punishment would have been enough, all we know is that this doesn’t change anything for our family,” she said.

Patel said they are still traumatized every time they drive down their street or pull into their driveway and that their surviving child who witnessed the crash has been deeply impacted.

“Our surviving daughter who witnessed this trauma has also lost her older sibling, her younger brother, and her sense of innocence,” she said. “This is worse than any fear or nightmare I’ve ever imagined. How could this be real, how could this have happened? But it has and we are left with broken pieces to deal with."

Ketan Chaudhari, the children's father, said he has been filled with "what ifs" since that day.

“We were completely helpless and vulnerable to (the) recklessness of a stranger,” he said.

Now the family said they hope by sharing their story they can bring about change for others.

“We want to honour our children Anaya and Jax’s lives by bringing awareness and attention to issues around dangerous and reckless driving,” Patel said through tears.

They are calling for changes to the systems that prepare young drivers for the roads, for parents to take more responsibility for their children's actions, and for the community as a whole to create a culture of safe driving.

“We are victims of a much bigger problem. Who should we hold responsible, a 17-year-old kid?” Chaudhari said.

He said that if a kid is too young and immature to understand the consequences of his actions and is therefore protected by the youth criminal justice system, then those kids shouldn't be given access to a vehicle that can cause serious destruction.

“How is this any different than providing a gun licence to adolescent children and then protecting them for shooting people?”  he said.

Chaudhari's message to all young drivers is simple: "Cars are not toys."

"Cars can be deadly weapons. Speed limits and laws are there to be followed and not being able to abide by them is a sign you are not ready to drive. Do you understand how quickly everything can go wrong in just a few seconds? What may seem fun, cool or thrilling can destroy innocent lives and your own. My children lost their lives because of a few moments of selfish stupidity,” he said.

He also said parents have to take responsibility in making sure their kids are ready for the road and responsible enough to handle a vehicle before allowing them to access one.

Patel called on everyone in the community to do their part, slow down, and drive safer.

“Our message is that we all collectively, we need to do better because this isn’t OK and this isn’t acceptable,” she said. “We ask you as a community to do your part in not only honouring the lives of our children but all those who have lost their lives to reckless driving."

Priti Patel, a relative of the family, shared a statement on behalf of King-Vaughan MPP Stephen Lecce, who represents the riding where this incident occurred. She said he has been working with the family to bring change following this collision.

"I will continue to work directly with Binta and Ketan, their friends and the entire Athabasca (Drive) community to help save lives, which is why the government just unveiled a new campaign and partnership with MADD to counter reckless and impaired driving targeting youth," the statement said. "It is also why we are working to strengthen learning and targeted advertising to students that is focused on promoting responsible driving, personal responsibility, and emphasizing the long lasting impact of their decisions. We are also working to enhance mandatory learning that addresses reckless driving within Ontario’s driver education program designed to prevent these types of tragedies from ever happening again."

Patel and Chaudhari were surrounded by loved ones as they gave their tear-filled statements to the media following the sentencing.