A Vancouver man has been convicted of impaired driving causing death after a 2010 crash in Pelly Crossing which killed a 27-year-old man.

Christopher Maxwell-Smith, 27, was convicted Friday afternoon in territorial court of impaired driving and driving with a blood alcohol concentration of more than 0.08 causing death.

Maxwell-Smith, who immigrated from England to Canada five years ago, was the foreman of a six-person scaffolding crew working on the Pelly River Bridge in July 2010.

He was behind the wheel when the team decided to drive from Pelly Crossing to Carmacks for groceries and more beer, the court heard during a trial last month.

Moments after the drive began, the van entered a construction zone on the North Klondike Highway.

While approaching a curve, the van drifted onto the soft shoulder of the road.

Maxwell-Smith testified he tried to correct the mistake, but overcorrected and went into the oncoming lane.

It was then that the van left the road, hit a ditch and rolled, landing back on its wheels, he said.

The only passenger not wearing his seatbelt, 27-year-old Valentino Vella, was thrown from the van and found by the other passengers lying on the road.

Maxwell-Smith attempted to save his friend, performing CPR until medical staff arrived and pronounced Vella dead at the scene.

On the stand, Maxwell-Smith insisted he only had three beers prior to driving and was not intoxicated at the time of the crash.

He claims he was distracted by passengers and momentarily looked away, which led to the van drifting onto the soft shoulder.

Two breathalyzer tests performed around two hours following the crash found Maxwell-Smith's blood alcohol content to be 0.11 and 0.12 — above the legal limit of 0.08.

A toxicology expert with the RCMP lab in Vancouver testified that would mean his levels at the time of the crash were between 0.13 and 0.15.

The expert, Verna Mendes, testified Maxwell-Smith would have needed to drink around eight beers, not three, to end up with test results at that level, Judge Nancy Orr said.

While delivering her verdict, the judge said testimony from other passengers in the van who all said they had no concerns about Maxwell-Smith's ability to drive, was not helpful nor reliable.

It was clear that though they were Crown witnesses, the men still had an allegiance to Maxwell-Smith, the judge said.

The issue is not whether Maxwell-Smith was "intoxicated” at the time of the crash, but where he was "impaired,” Orr said.

A number of factors pointed to Maxwell-Smith's impairment, the judge said. They included the smell of liquor on his breath, his speed and his decision to drive the van with only a B.C. learner's lisence.

A crash reconstruction expert testified the van was going 101 km/h when it left the road but was likely travelling faster before it swerved.

The speed limit in the construction zone was 70 km/h.

Maxwell-Smith, who only has a B.C. learner's driver's licence class 7, is not legally allowed to drive with more than two passengers and must have zero alcohol in his blood, the court heard.

Maxwell-Smith also passed eight signs warning of the construction zone leading up to the crash, the judge said.

Maxwell-Smith was found not guilty of impaired driving causing bodily harm and driving with a blood alcohol concentration of more than 0.08 causing bodily harm.

Those charges stem from injuries allegedly sustained by Gary Cummings, another passenger in the car.

Cummings could not be found by court officials nor police to testify in court and confirm his injuries.

There is some indication he may have been deported to England, the judge said.

Maxwell-Smith, who remains in custody, is scheduled to be sentenced in November.