Driver out on bail, appealing prison sentence in crash that left teen in wheelchair

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It’s a new development Abby Roby says she won’t share with her fragile son.

Jesse Bleck, the driver who struck then-teenage cyclist Tristan Roby with his car five years ago, leaving him with a catastrophic brain injury, has been released on bail.

“I’m not telling him,” Abby Roby said of her son, now 23. “I’m sure (Tristan’s) heard that he was going to appeal it. But I didn’t tell him that he’s out.

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Late last week, Bleck was granted bail pending appeal at the Ontario Court of Appeal. He is appealing his convictions and sentence for failing to remain at the scene of a crash and prohibited driving for the crash on Exeter Road at 11 p.m. on June 21, 2019. He was released from custody on Tuesday.

Bleck, 31, was convicted a year ago by a jury after a five-week trial. After switching defence lawyers and some procedural delays, he was sentenced last month to 4 ½ years in prison by Superior Court Justice Kelly Tranquilli.

The appeal likely won’t be heard for several months.

Tristan Roby was cycling with a friend along the road to go night fishing at a creek near Lambeth – a celebration of Tristan’s birthday – when he was struck by the vehicle.

He suffered multiple injuries, the worst being a catastrophic brain injury that has left him confined to a wheelchair and dependent on the assistance of others for his basic needs.

His bicycle was dragged under the Nissan Altima for almost a kilometre to the parking lot of a Exeter Road motel. Once there, Bleck and one of the two passengers ran away. It was six months before he was arrested.

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The issue at the trial was who was driving the car. A former Oneida police officer testified he saw Bleck get out of the driver’s side of the car. The evidence pointed to Bleck owning the car and registering it under his cousin’s name, even though he had multiple convictions that prohibited him from driving.

Bleck’s ex-girlfriend, who gave police statements pointing the blame at Bleck, and the passenger gave confusing, contradictory evidence that tried to steer responsibility away from Bleck.

The jury convicted Bleck and, at his sentencing hearing, Tranquilli heard Bleck was caught driving again in Brantford while on bail awaiting his trial. His subsequent bail conditions included he wear an ankle monitor.

An ankle monitor is also part of his latest strict bail release that required two sureties.

At the time of Bleck’s sentencing in June, Abby Roby said her son’s health was precarious and deteriorating. But he has rallied and stabilized.

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“He was fading so fast and then (Bleck) finally got sentenced and he was taken out in handcuffs and it was like Tristan got a little wind in his sails,” she said. “The last thing I’m going to do is say: ‘Oh by the way, he’s out again.’”

She said she also was given some encouraging news: Brain researchers at the Robarts Research Institute have interviewed and examined her son and told her Tristan can hear, see and understand what people are saying.

“He feels, he hears, he sees, he responds to verbal commands. He’s just trapped inside his body,” she said.

Abby Roby fears that the appeal process could set back any gains. Since the sentencing, they’ve had a sense of relief.

“It was just nice being out and about and not fearing that I’m going to run into him,” she said.

jsims@postmedia.com

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