Review driving death law: judge

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A High Court judge says Parliament needs to review the offence of reckless driving causing death because the public attitude to culpable drivers has hardened.

Justice John Fogarty made the comment before sentencing Cassandra Mary Anderson to four years and 10 months' jail at the High Court in Invercargill today.

The 24-year-old woman had earlier pleaded guilty to the motor-manslaughter of Lenore Jean Carr on September 14 last year.

Mrs Carr, 53, died when her silver 1995 Mitsubishi FTO and the blue Nissan Cefiro driven by Anderson ploughed into Queens Park opposite the intersection of St Andrew St and Queens Dr at 3.30am.

Justice Fogarty said he recognised that Anderson "lost it" that night after she was assaulted by her partner.

She was distressed and angry as she drove along St Andrew St, ramming Mrs Carr's vehicle twice before tailgating her at speeds of more than 100kmh right until the crash.

But her bad driving was persistent and deliberate and would have been terrifying for Mrs Carr whose vehicle ploughed into a tree, he said.

Earlier, defence counsel Bill Dawkins read out passages of letters Anderson had written to Mrs Carr's family and to the judge. In them she described herself as a "monster' who felt guilt-ridden, disgusted and ashamed of herself.

"You have every right to hate me for the rest of your lives. I hope, in time, you will forgive me," she wrote.

Justice Fogarty used seven years' jail as a starting point, giving Anderson credit for her remorse, previous clean criminal record and early guilty plea. He said she had had a "rough" upbringing but had made a considerable effort to get qualifications, get a job and live a productive life.

"All that has come to an end," he said before handing down the jail term and a five-year disqualification from driving.

But the judge said it had been difficult to sentence Anderson. She first appeared before him last week however, following submissions by Mr Dawkins, Justice Fogarty said he needed more time to consider case law on similar types of offending.

He told Anderson today that it was important her sentence was consistent with the way others had been dealt with.

He said Parliament needed to look carefully at current legislation which offered a lesser penalty for the same offending. The offence of reckless driving causing death - with a maximum sentence of five years' jail - had originally been introduced because juries were reluctant to find drivers guilty of manslaughter.

"Since then the public attitude to the tragic deaths of innocent people has hardened. The public is simply appalled and angry at the deaths of innocent people like Mrs Carr."

Justice Fogarty said, as a result of the change in public expectation, judges were regularly sentencing drivers in motor-manslaughter cases to terms of imprisonment well over five years.

The availability of the reckless driving causing death charge, with its lesser sentence, was sending a mixed message and needed to be reviewed, he said.

- NZPA