Nearly a year and a half after the tragic collision that took the life of one WolfPack athlete and injured two more, the alleged driver in the case has pleaded guilty to one of the two charges against them.
Shortly before 10 a.m. this morning, the accused, Colval Shaquille Abbinet, appeared via video to plead guilty to one count of “[driving] a motor vehicle without due care and attention,” stemming from a November 2023 vehicle crash that resulted in the death of fourth-year WolfPack athlete Owyn McInnis and life-altering injuries to two other players, Riley Brinnen and Owen Waterhouse.
On Nov. 29, 2023, Abbinett was allegedly behind the wheel of a Dodge Ram pickup truck when he lost control of the vehicle before it collided with a Volkswagen carrying the three TRU athletes.
On Nov. 25, 2024, days before the one-year anniversary of the collision, Abbinett was charged with two offenses under the Motor Vehicle Act, namely one count of “[driving] a motor vehicle without due care and attention,” and one count of “[driving] without reasonable consideration,” and was initially scheduled to be arraigned late January 2025. That arraignment, however, did not occur and was rescheduled for May 22. At that time, Abbinett told Justice Mariane Armstrong that he was having difficulties obtaining legal counsel and was granted a two-week continuance, setting the new date for a peremptory hearing – meaning the accused would be required to plead, with or without legal representation – for June 19.
That hearing, also, did not take place as a bomb threat forced the Kamloops Law Courts to shut down for the day.
Abbinett will next appear in court on Aug. 25, at which time a date will be scheduled for his sentencing, but only on the first count. The second count, according to the Crown, will be dealt with in “another fashion” at a later date, though the details of this “fashion” have not yet been revealed.