Accused picks trial by judge

The man charged in a 2023 hit-and-run death of a teenage boy in Kelowna has chosen to be tried by a provincial court judge alone.

Brandon Kazakoff, 30, was in court earlier this week for election of a trial on the charges dangerous operation of a motor vehicle causing death, failure to stop at the scene of an accident and assault with a weapon.

The charges that were filed in September relate to events alleged to have happened Oct. 21, 2023, resulting in the death 15-year-old Tristan Seeger.

Seeger’s dad, Jason Seeger, said in an interview shortly after charges were levied, that he would have preferred to see Crown counsel come back with a more significant charge in the case.

"We just want to grieve our son, and this just added to opening the wound, if you will,” Jason said.

At the time of the fatal crash, police said they were investigating a homicide. They said it happened shortly after teens were seen using bear spray on a number of people near Ben Lee Park in Kelowna's Rutland neighbourhood.

Kazakoff is currently out on bail.