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www.oakvillebeaver.com The Oakville Beaver, Friday December 26, 2008 - 3 Guilty plea in boating death of Oakville man By Matt Driscoll METROLAND NORTH MEDIA GROUP It was an emotional day last week as a Bracebridge courtroom heard how a sunny afternoon on the lake ended in two lives destroyed. On Dec. 16, Andrew Betteridge, 25, of Bracebridge pleaded guilty to impaired operation of a vessel causing death. Betteridge's mother and girlfriend were in attendance, as were several family members of the victim, 24-year-old Steven Hamel, who wept as the charges were read. In an agreed statement of facts, assistant Crown attorney Lyndsay Jeanes outlined the series of events that ended in Hamel's death. Hamel lived in Oakville, but travelled to Muskoka on June 20 to stay at a friend's cottage in Bala, said Jeanes. Court was told that Betteridge was a friend of the cottage owner and lived on a nearby island where he rented a boathouse. At roughly noon on June 21, Betteridge docked at the Bala cottage where Hamel was staying and had two or three beers with Hamel and the cottage owner, court was told. The group then decided to travel over to the nearby Kee to Bala to buy tickets to a concert scheduled for that night. The trio then travelled down the road to the Bala Falls Pub where they spent a large When they realized portion of the day, court what had happened, heard. the other two men During that time, the screamed for help and three bought some 20 attempted to row their drinks, including 14 now disabled craft to shooters and several pints shore. of beer, although Jeanes Police and firefightsaid it is not exactly clear ers responded to the who drank what. incident but were Court heard that the unable to locate men then returned to the Hamel. cottage in Bala and con- Steven Hamel Betteridge was sumed more beer before deciding to taken to the Bracebridge OPP go for a boat ride on Lake Muskoka detachment where he blew readings in the early evening. of 183 milligrams and 172 mg of According to Jeanes, the men alcohol per 100 millilitres of blood, would play a game wherein one more than twice the legal limit. would drive, while the other two Although he first denied driving stood or sat on the front of the boat. the vessel, he later admitted he had The driver would attempt to throw been driving, said Jeanes. the passengers from the front by rapHamel's body was pulled from the idly stopping and starting or by turn- waters of Lake Muskoka two days ing in tight circles. later. The coroner determined his The vessel did not contain the injuries included a fractured skull legal number of life-jackets at the and injuries to his shoulders consistime, said Jeanes. tent with damage that could have Betteridge took his turn driving been inflicted by a boat propeller, the boat, but what happened next is said Jeanes. somewhat unclear, said Jeanes. She also revealed that on March While Betteridge claims the boat 25, 2008, Betteridge had been crashed into a wave, the other pas- charged with careless driving after a senger claimed the boat struck separate accident involving alcohol, rocks. and had been ordered not to have What is clear is that Hamel and any alcohol in his system when operhis friend were both thrown from ating a motor vehicle. the boat and only one of the men Betteridge will be sentenced resurfaced. March 6, 2009. 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