Ocean was being carried by dad Michael on the sidewalk near Smithe and Hornby Streets when a vehicle jumped the curb and struck the father.

The memory box that Star Joinson and her partner Michael Hiiva keep for their daughter Ocean is modest: a Rubbermaid container with her birthday balloons, the cards the parents received, even her tiny preemie diapers.

They hope one day to get a better container, something prettier, but since that day last July, when 23-month-old Ocean Oshi Noelle was killed by a motor vehicle that jumped a curb at Smithe and Hornby streets in downtown Vancouver, grief has held them in its grip.

After Vancouver police announced Thursday that criminal charges will be laid against the driver of the car that struck Michael and Ocean, Joinson said they are finally feeling a sense of relief.

“We’ve spent a year not knowing whether there would be justice for her death,” said Joinson.

“It’s very emotional,” said her father, Hiiva, who is still recovering from life-altering injuries.

Seyed Moshfeghi Zadeh, 30, is facing one count of dangerous operation of a vehicle causing death and one count of dangerous operation of a vehicle causing bodily harm.

A man of the same name and age was also charged in 2021 in a civil forfeiture case involving more than $83,000 in cash and gold bars, alleged to be “proceeds and instruments of unlawful activity,” discovered after a police investigation into an alleged kidnapping and assault.

Zadeh was behind the wheel of the Ford Escape that struck Hiiva and Ocean, said Sgt. Steve Addison of the Vancouver Police Department.

Joinson said she hopes that the charges send a message that drivers responsible for vehicular homicides will be held accountable.

The loss of their daughter has changed the couple’s lives forever.

Joinson had worked that day. “I was exhausted. I needed to eat.” She called Michael, who was at home with their toddler. The couple decided to go to a Subway restaurant near the courthouse on Hornby. “We were meeting there.”

Michael was across the street, carrying Ocean.  “I was getting closer, and they were waiting for the light to change,” said Joinson. Suddenly she saw two cars crash. They smashed, barrel-rolled, flew in the air. She remembers screaming, “My baby! My baby!”

“I was the first responder because I was the first one there,” said Joinson. She saw everything at once. Her daughter was dead, her husband bleeding and gasping on the ground. She remembers trying to help Michael, and then a stranger pulled her off, telling her not to look.

Michael is still recovering from injuries that included a punctured lung, fractured ribs, lacerations to spleen and liver, fractured back, arm and legs. Joinson is suffering from the trauma of witnessing the accident.

In the aftermath, the blows kept coming. The family learned that under ICBC rules, the parents were only entitled to $14,918 each for the death of the toddler, while damage to a vehicle would be worth up to $200,000, said Hiiva.

“They believe that’s all the life of a child is worth,” said Joinson. “It’s not acceptable that a life can be so devalued.”

Compounding the family’s grief, Joinson said B.C. Housing tried to force them to move out of their unit shortly after the accident. “Our landlord tried to evict us for being ‘over-housed’, stating we didn’t need a two-bedroom because we didn’t have a daughter anymore.”

With the help of their MLA, they were allowed to stay in their unit.

Now 21 weeks pregnant, Joinson is temporarily living in Nelson to be closer to her family doctor. She said knowing that charges have been filed has helped the couple feel “a little more calm,” but they don’t know whether they will be able to emotionally deal with a trial.

The couple is having two pendants made containing some of their daughter’s ashes, so they can keep her close to their hearts.

“We light candles every night for Ocean,” said Joinson.

The family has an online fundraiser to raise money for medical care, funeral expenses and healing.

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