R v Primmer [2014] NSWDC 370

District Court New South Wales

Medium Neutral Citation: R v Primmer [2014] NSWDC 370 Date of orders: 25 June 2014 Decision date: 25 June 2014 Jurisdiction: Criminal Before: Conlon DCJ Decision: Sentenced to a non‑parole period of two years and six months which will date from 6 December 2013 and expire on 5 June 2016. Sentenced to an additional term of 12 months which will expire on 5 June 2017. Disqualified from driving for 10 years. Catchwords: Dangerous Driving Occasioning Grievous Bodily Harm Cases Cited: R v Errington [2005] 157 ACrimR 553; R v Khatter [2000] NSWCCA 32 Category: Sentence Parties: Regina (Crown) Shaun Primmer (Offender) Representation: Counsel:

Solicitors: File Number(s): 2013/368556

Judgment 1. The offender Sean Primmer appears for sentence following his plea of guilty to a charge of dangerous driving occasioning grievous bodily harm contrary to S 52A(3)(c) of the Crimes Act carrying a maximum penalty of seven years imprisonment. 2. The Crown bundle of documents (exhibit A) contains a statement of Agreed facts and they are as follows. That at about 8.30pm on 6 December 2013 the offender was the driver of a Ford Falcon sedan. Accompanying him in the front passenger seat was 14 year old Mia Owens. A further person, Timothy Lukian, occupied the rear passenger seat behind the driver. 3. The offender drove his car generally in a southerly direction on Graham Street, Unanderra. It has one traffic lane in each direction, the speed limit for the area is 50 kilometres an hour. A witness, Steven Page, heard the engine of a car revving loudly as it travelled down Graham Street, then he saw the Ford Falcon driving with its tyres screeching turn right into Waples Road. That intersection is posted with a stop sign. As the car made the turn the witness Page observed the car accelerating further and veered onto the wrong side of the road. Whilst attempting to make this turn the offender lost control of the car. The car began rotating in a clockwise direction before leaving the roadway. At this point the car has gone up onto the kerb and collided heavily with a wooden power pole outside number 24 Waples Road. 4. The offender and Lukian were able to free themselves from the car. Mr Page was first to attend the scene and to provide assistance. He saw the offender get out of the car and heard him say, "I've got to go, I've got no licence". Mr Page told the offender to stay where he was as Mr Page tried to assist the victim. Ms Owens was trapped in the car, she was unresponsive and suffering from critical injuries. She was later released by rescue personnel and airlifted to the Westmead Hospital for emergency treatment. 5. The victim is currently being treated by Dr Heather Burnett at the Children's Hospital, Westmead. Dr Burnett stated that Ms Owens sustained multiple serious injuries including severe traumatic brain injury, a left hemiplegia (arm and leg weakness and stiffness), a pelvic fracture and contusions of her lungs, spleen, pancreas and left kidney. She required medical and neurosurgical management in the paediatric intensive care unit which included; (1) intubation and ventilation, (2) medical management of increased intracranial pressure, (3) management of abnormal muscle tone with medication, splinting and botulin toxin injections, (4) acute and chronic pain management, (5) medical management for behavioural disturbance, (6) gastrostomy placement for management of feeding difficulty, (7) intensive rehabilitation which included physiotherapy, occupational therapy, speech pathology and social work support as an inpatient. 6. Since the date of the admission it is said that Ms Owens' condition has improved, however she remains significantly impaired with regard to her motor function, cognition and continues to experience significant behavioural disturbance and chronic pain. As a result of this severe brain injury the victim has irreversible brain damage that will continue to affect her motor function, cognition, memory and behaviour on a permanent basis. She will require long term rehabilitation in a supported living arrangement due to her injuries. She remains an inpatient in the hospital to this day. 7. The offender and Lukian suffered minor injuries. A breath test of the offender at the scene returned a negative reading. However blood and urine samples were taken from the offender after the collision and they returned positive results for amphetamine, methamphetamine, delta‑9‑tetrahydrocannabinol (which is cannabis) and delta-9 THC acid. 8. Upon a review of the matter Dr Pearl, clinical forensic pharmacologist, was of the opinion that as a result of those drugs being in his system there would have been some impairment of the offender's driving ability under the influence of those drugs. 9. An analysis was undertaken of the crash site by Senior Constable Jimmy. His observations of the various markings on the road appear at paras 9 and 10 of the agreed facts. That officer was of the opinion that the appearance and orientation of the striations within the scuff marks that he observed, confirmed that no breaking or acceleration had been applied during the car's loss of control. An analysis of speed determined that at the time the car began to lose control it was travelling between 82.2 kilometres an hour and 95.1 kilometres an hour. The car was examined, there was no mechanical defect or failure found within the vehicle that may have contributed to the cause of the collision. 10. The offender has never held a licence and he has been disqualified from obtaining a licence for three years after being sentenced in the Wollongong Local Court on 26 November 2013 for being unlicensed following a police pursuit. The car was also unregistered and uninsured at the time of the collision.