‘No charm left in life’: Saskatoon teen sentenced in high-speed crash that killed 16-year-old

A Saskatoon teen who pleaded guilty to killing his friend and seriously injuring another in a high-speed crash was sentenced to two years of probation at Saskatoon Provincial Court Tuesday.

The 16-year-old, whose name can’t be published under the Youth Criminal Justice Act, was in court as he heard Justice Bradley Mitchell read the joint sentencing submission from the Crown and defence.

Shahryar Amir, 16, was a passenger in the backseat of the Honda Civic that crashed into a pole and flipped over on a stretch of Taylor Street East early in the morning on April 14, 2024.

None of Amir’s family was in attendance. The Crown read a part of the father’s comments in a victim impact statement that was submitted to the judge but not made publicly available.

“He indicates there is no charm left in life, and he is just passing his time in this world, waiting to join his son as soon as possible,” Crown prosecutor Michael Pilon said Tuesday.

In the joint submission the court learned the then 15-year-old driver, who did not have his license, left his house late at night last April to pick up friends and go joyriding in the 8th Street area. They waited to pick up Amir until after 3 a.m. on April 14 because his mom was still awake and he didn’t want to get caught sneaking out.

After driving around 8th Street for a couple of hours, friends started to get dropped off around 5:30 a.m.

Pilon said the father was due home from work around that time, and the driver was “literally racing his father home” to have the vehicle back in the driveway before his father returned when he lost control at a curve on Taylor Street going about 100 kilometres per hour, roughly twice the speed limit.

The vehicle spun and smashed into what was described as a shear-proof light pole and flipped on its roof. The Crown says Amir likely died on impact with the pole and was ejected from the car during the crash.

Another teen was sent to hospital with serious injuries.

Police noted an “enormous” area of debris when they arrived on scene and at one point, the driver placed his hands behind his back and said, “I killed him.”

Despite sentencing being delayed so the victim’s family could return from a trip to Saudi Arabia and attend court, they declined meetings with Pilon and chose not to be in court Tuesday, saying it would be too hard. Amir was the family’s youngest child and only son.

The teen driver declined to speak when given the opportunity at court. He initially pleaded guilty to dangerous driving causing death and one count of dangerous driving causing bodily harm last November.

He is probation orders include a curfew, not operating a vehicle during the probation period, and serving 240 hours of community service.