For the first time in a Canadian court, a data recorder in a car was used to convict a man in Montreal of dangerous driving causing death.

The data recorder, also known as a black box, records the last few seconds of driving before a car's air bag deploys. In an accident in 2001 in Montreal, the black box in Eric Gauthier's car proved that he was driving 131 km/h in a 50 km/h zone when his vehicle hit Yacine Zinet's car, killing him and injuring a passenger.




At the time of the accident, Gauthier, now 26, told police that he was driving just over the speed limit when another car ran a red light and crashed into his car. But police investigators were suspicious because of the heavy damage to the vehicles and the absence of skid marks. They petitioned and won the right to use the black box data as evidence.

The black box in Gauthier's Pontiac Sunfire indicated he was driving more than 130 km/h, almost three times the speed limit.

Gauthier was sentenced to 18 months in jail for dangerous driving. His licence has also been suspended for three years.

Eric Gauthier
Eric Gauthier

Gauthier's family was shocked by the sentence.

The victim's family was surprised, saying nothing could bring Yacine back but that justice had been served.

The Crown prosecutor recommended that Gauthier should serve three years in jail. Gauthier's defence attorney argued for a 12-to-20-month sentence to be served at his parents' home.