Jury finds 35-year-old guilty of impaired driving causing death of friend

The courthouse in London, Ont. (CTV London)

Emotions were running high at the London courthouse Friday after a jury found Kelly Jacobs, 35, of Moravian First Nation guilty of impaired driving causing death.

On Dec. 2 of 2018, Beulah Peters, 23, of Munsee-Delaware First Nation, was struck and killed by a pick-up truck while walking along Jubilee Road southwest of London.

The jury heard on the night in question, the victim had been out partying with friends that included the accused.

Throughout the trial, court heard from several witnesses that testified about Jacobs’s level of intoxication through the night and while behind the wheel of the pick-up.

Outside the courthouse there were tears from the family of Peters. Her sister, Ro Peters, had a difficult time controlling her emotions.

Through tears she said, “She (Beulah) was my everything. She was my best friend and she had her whole life ahead of her but that was taken away from her,” said Peters.

After a two week trial the jury deliberated for about three and a half hours before returning with its verdict.

“I’m happy with the verdict and now my family can have some peace that justice was served,” said Peters.

The matter will be back in court on Nov. 15 when a sentencing hearing date is expected to be selected for Jacobs.