Ontario drunk driver who 'decimated' family could earn day parole
A drunk driver that devastated a young Ontario family three years ago could soon see the light of day outside of prison.
The Parole Board of Canada is set to decide Wednesday whether Marco Muzzo, now 32, will be granted day parole after spending most of the last 37 months behind bars.
On Sept. 27, 2015, Muzzo’s Jeep collided with a minivan carrying members of the Neville-Lake family in Vaughan, Ont., north of Toronto. Three Neville-Lake children under the age of 10 (Daniel, nine, Harrison, five, and Milly, two) and a 65-year-old grandfather (Gary Neville) were killed and two others were injured in the collision.
The deadly incident made headlines across Canada, placing the spotlight on drunk driving. More than $250,000 was raised for the Neville-Lake family fund on the fundraising website GoFundMe.
In February 2016, Muzzo pleaded guilty to six charges in relation to the high-profile crash, including four counts of impaired driving causing death and two counts of impaired driving causing bodily harm. A month later, his fate would be determined in a Newmarket, Ont., courthouse.
Court documents revealed Muzzo, then 29, was speeding and ran through a stop sign when the T-bone crash occurred. He was also driving drunk with a blood alcohol level that was more than twice the legal limit, according to court papers.
In her March 2016 decision, the judge ruled Muzzo had the financial means to afford a ride home from the airport following a bachelor party in Miami, but chose not to. Muzzo comes from one of Canada’s wealthiest families, which is worth $1.86 billion, Canadian Business magazine reported in 2017.
“In one fell swoop, he decimated an entire generation of the Neville-Lake family, its legacy and its future,” Ontario Superior Court Justice Michelle Fuerst said in her decision. She added Muzzo’s “extraordinary” actions caused “enormous harm” to those affected.
Muzzo received a 10-year prison sentence with credit for time served. He was also banned from driving for 12 years. Muzzo has been serving time behind bars at the Beaver Creek Institution in Gravenhurst, Ont.
Meanwhile, the Neville-Lake family is seeking more than $25 million for damages in a lawsuit filed against Muzzo and his family’s drywall company.
The convicted drunk driver will be also be eligible for full parole in May 2019 and statutory release on June 18, 2022.
With files from The Canadian Press
