A judge has dismissed a request by a driver who caused a hit-and-run accident to withdraw his plea of ​​guilty.

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Ian Joly’s dangerous driving trial will start next month after a judge dismissed Joly’s attempt to withdraw his guilty plea.

Chris Fox’s grieving family called it a “small victory” Wednesday following the ruling by Supreme Court Justice Kerry McVey.

Fox was 33 when he was struck and killed during an argument with Joly in the parking lot of the Circle K on Baseline Road on Sept. 15, 2020.

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Earlier this year, Joly pleaded guilty to dangerous driving causing Fox’s death, as well as hitting Fox with the van and running him over.

Fox’s family members had expected their long and “painful” legal battle to end at his sentencing hearing in May.

However, the trial was abruptly halted when Joly objected to the prosecution’s argument that he had acted “carelessly” on the night he struck and killed Fox.

When the trial resumed in June, Joly informed the judge that “after some thought” he would like to withdraw his guilty plea and go to trial.

McVey denied that motion Wednesday after hearing arguments from Joly, who does not have a lawyer and is representing himself in the case, as well as District Attorneys Dallas Mack and Shakiba Azimi.

Joly was assisted by Ottawa lawyer Jenny McKnight, who was appointed as an amicus – or “friend of the court” – to help interpret the complex legal issues and ensure Joly’s rights were protected in the trial.

Joly initially pleaded guilty on February 12, the same day his twice-postponed trial was set to begin.

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In his motion to withdraw his guilty plea, Joly argued that his guilty plea was “not entered” because he did not know the prosecution would rely on the aggravating circumstance that he acted recklessly in hitting Fox with the van and driving away from the scene.

In his motion he also claims his guilty plea was “unintentional.”

Joly said he also disputes several parts of an agreed statement of facts filed ahead of the sentencing hearing in May.

According to this summary of facts, Fox died as a result of a fight that broke out in the Circle K parking lot after Joly saw Fox near his van during a “verbal confrontation” with Joly’s girlfriend.

Joly punched Fox several times and continued beating him while he was on the ground.

Fox followed Joly back to the van and blocked his path. At one point, Joly put the van in reverse, turned the steering wheel to the right and accelerated backward, and the front of the car moved toward Fox. The driver’s side tires “hooked” his feet and legs, causing him to fall as the van ran over him in reverse.

Witnesses saw Joly stop for a moment before driving around Fox’s body and leaving the scene.

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Fox was taken to hospital but died from internal bleeding caused by a ruptured heart.

Joly was arrested 20 minutes later after witnesses wrote down his license plate number as he drove away.

On Wednesday morning, Joly filed a formal motion in court to withdraw his guilty plea.

That same day, the judge rejected his motion.

“Mr Joly has not persuaded me that his (guilty) plea was invalid,” McVey said. “As a result, the sentencing submissions will continue on August 8… we will continue where we left off with the Crown’s submissions on the sentence they are seeking.”

Prosecutors have already said they will seek a prison sentence of two years less for each day spent in a provincial prison.

Joly confirmed on Wednesday that he would fight for a conditional sentence that would include house arrest but no prison time.

He declined to comment Wednesday when asked about the judge’s decision and proposed sentence.

“I don’t want to talk about it now,” Joly said outside the courthouse.

Joly was originally scheduled to go to trial in the summer of 2023. However, the hearing was postponed until December after Joly failed to appear for a scheduling conference.

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His December trial was postponed until February 2024, with Joly appearing via Zoom — rather than in person — on the first day of the hearing.

He pleaded guilty on February 12, the day his postponed trial was due to begin.

Fox’s family members expressed frustration to the judge over the numerous delays and postponements.

Fox hails from Brockville, where he became known as the local “prankster.”

Members of his family traveled to Ottawa to personally attend each hearing.

The family requested permission to re-read the victim impact statements, which were first read into the court record in May.

Prosecutors said the family wanted to refresh their statements “given the time gap” between the start of the sentencing phase in May and its conclusion, which is currently scheduled for Aug. 8.

“A speedy process is particularly critical in this case given the length of time it has been in the system and the cost to all those involved, including Mr. Fox’s family,” McVey said. In August, she granted the family permission to have their statements read anew.

Fox’s mother, Bonnie Massey, wrote in a victim impact statement that the family has been in “absolute agony” and “unbearable grief” since the night Fox died.

“It’s been almost four years… four years of not being able to move forward, of sitting in limbo… almost four wasted years. We put everything aside to be here.

“This tragedy has already cost us a lifetime of suffering, but we have to accept it so we can move forward and begin to heal.”

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