ANTIGONISH, N.S. — A former compliance officer who was performing illegal vehicle inspections has had his criminal charges replaced with a fine.
Chet Bernard Chisholm pleaded guilty in Antigonish provincial court on Monday to failing to inspect a vehicle in accordance with the Motor Vehicle Act and inspecting a vehicle outside of an official testing station.
The summary offences came with a combined fine of $1,050, which his lawyer told the court Chisholm will pay within a week.
Chisholm, who was a school bus inspector and vehicle compliance officer with the Department of Transportation and Infrastructure Renewal at the time the alleged offences occurred, was originally charged with criminal negligence causing death, two counts of criminal negligence causing bodily harm and breach of trust.
On Monday, the court heard an agreed statement of facts that Chisholm had done an inspection on a 2003 Toyota Corolla in his Lakevale, Antigonish County, shop.
In January 2018 that car was involved in a fatal crash on Highway 107 in Porters Lake.
Prosecutor Jonathan Gavel told Judge Richard MacKinnon on Monday that the Crown is not alleging the shortcomings in Chisholm’s inspection caused the crash.
The 49-year-old driver of the other car involved in the crash was killed.
The two occupants in the vehicle inspected by Chisholm were injured.
That vehicle inspected by Chisholm was later found to have a “significant loss of metal thickness” in its frame.
Though other vehicle inspections conducted by Chisholm were found to be non-compliant, the Department of Transportation and Infrastructure Renewal is refusing to say how many.
“The investigation that led to charges against Chisholm was an RCMP investigation and we co-operated with that,” said department spokeswoman Marla MacInnis.
“The inspections completed and charges laid were not related to his employment as a motor carrier inspector. Mr. Chisholm is no longer employed with the province. Specific details surrounding a person’s employment are confidential, so I’m unable to provide further information.”
