By Ashley Legassic

Accused in Shuswap fatal hit and run tells his side of the story

Jan 23, 2019 | 1:17 PM

KAMLOOPS — The man accused of hitting and killing a motorcyclist in the Shuswap before taking off, has taken the stand during his trial to tell his side of the story.

Raymond Edward Swann is charged with criminal negligence causing death in connection to the April 2016 incident. Brian Watson, 60, was killed during the collision, and Swann left the scene afterward.

Although Swann pleaded not guilty to the charge, he admits to running over Watson. He’s asking for Supreme Court Justice Dev Dley to consider a verdict of not criminally responsible by reason of mental disorder (NCRMD).

Swann took the stand yesterday (Jan. 22), when he described his behaviour at the time of the incident and his statements to police afterward.

Crown prosecutor Neil Flanagan cross-examined Swann today, suggesting that Swann was incredibly exhausted at the time of the crash and it played a part in the incident.

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Flanagan described how Swann thought at the time that he was frightened, worried he was going to be killed and thought it was the end of the world.

“I suggest a second thing you were feeling was exhausted. You were very, very, very tired,” Flanagan said.

“I was frightened, scared, but not exhausted,” Swann said.

Flanagan said Swann’s statements to police directly disputed that. He said audio and video tapes played in court yesterday showed Swann telling police officers how he hadn’t slept at all the night prior.

“I don’t know why I told them that,” Swann said, adding that the several times he told police he hadn’t slept the night prior to the incident he was lying.

Court also heard how Swann had been off methadone for about three weeks prior to the incident, and he told police at the time it had been affecting his sleep.

Flanagan said it was so difficult for Swann to sleep, that despite having sleeping aids he went to friends for different medications including Xanax and Trazodone. Two Trazodone pills were in Swann’s pocket when he was arrested, and according to one psychiatrist’s testimony there’s no record of Swann being prescribed the medication.

Several times during Swann’s statements to police, he mentioned how he didn’t sleep at all the night of April 2, 2016 into the morning of April 3 — the day the incident happened.

“I made up stories that night, I don’t know why,” Swann said on the stand.

“Let’s go back to you being a person that tells the truth,” Flanagan said.

“Well that night I didn’t tell the truth,” Swann said.

When asked why he would lie about that, Swann replied that he wasn’t thinking clearly and doesn’t know why he would have lied.

“I suggest you told them that beacuse it’s the truth!” Flanagan fired back.

“No, it wasn’t the truth,” Swann said.

Swann did recall running into something as he was driving that afternoon, only describing it as a “red and black thing”, but wasn’t aware it could have been a motorcycle until he spoke to his wife after. He says he thought at the time that it was a hallucination.

Testimony is expected to wrap up later this week.