Nearly eight months after the hit-and-run accident that killed her only daughter, a mother on Montreal’s South Shore cannot grieve and regrets the lack of resources to help her through this tragedy.
“When my daughter’s life was taken, mine ended too. Will I ever have the semblance of a normal life? I’m in the unknown I can’t go on living my life like nothing happened. I miss her so much,” breathes Éliane Dell in a sobbing voice.
His 25-year-old daughter, Clarissa St-Armand Dell, was fatally wounded on June 24 while crossing the intersection of Rome Boulevard and Lautrec Street in Brossard at around 4:20 a.m.
Thierry Laforce / QMI Agency
The driver fled immediately, leaving several horrified witnesses and the young woman’s body behind.
“He left it on the street like ordinary garbage. I have a lot of sadness in me, but also a lot of incomprehension,” says the grieving mother.
After nearly two weeks of investigation, a man was handcuffed in connection with the case. José Luis Raymond has pleaded not guilty to the charges against him of failing to stop after a fatal accident and dangerous driving resulting in death. The suspect, arrested on July 7, was conditionally released pending trial.
Difficult grief
“Clarissa, it’s been my whole life. She was my other half, my family and my best friend. We were together every day. Losing her overnight without being able to talk to her and touch her is unbearable,” laments Eliane Dell.
Since the death of her daughter, she has been knocking on every door asking for help. She thinks the results are far from worthy of her punishment. She deplores the lack of resources for bereaved parents who must learn to live without their child.
Thierry Laforce / QMI Agency
“I not only mourn my daughter, but am also called mom or grandmother. The best thing in the world for a mother is to be called a mom. It will never happen to me again,” Clarissa’s mother yelled.
tribute
Eliane Dell, who has not set foot in her daughter’s room since her death, goes to the scene of the tragedy every day to lay flowers. Until recently, a cross had been planted at the crossing. However, the city replaced it with a plaque honoring Clarissa on Friday.
“They also planted a tree to replace the tree that was there before the incident,” Ms Dell said, grateful to have a place to gather.
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