Chrystle Olivia Kemp, 27, of Shepparton, pleaded guilty in Shepparton County Court to dangerous driving causing the death of her niece, five-year-old Savannah Kemp, and dangerous driving causing serious injury to Elodie Aldridge, which resulted in the loss of her unborn baby.
The charges stem from a car crash at Shepparton East on October 20 last year where Kemp did not stop at a stop sign at the intersection of Old Dookie Rd and Boundary Rd and was hit on either side by cars travelling in opposite directions on Boundary Rd.
Savannah, a back-seat passenger in Kemp’s vehicle, was not in a booster seat, and was instead wearing only a lap-sash seatbelt.
One of the vehicles Kemp hit was driven by Mrs Aldridge, who was 34 weeks pregnant and returning home from a maternal nurse appointment where she had just been told her baby was healthy.
Mrs Aldridge was flown to hospital in Melbourne where, during an emergency caesarean, her baby was delivered stillborn.
Under Victorian law, anyone found guilty of dangerous driving causing death must be imprisoned, unless they can prove substantial and compelling circumstances that are exceptional and rare that keep them out of jail.
On Wednesday, Judge Geoffrey Chettle said Kemp had reached the criteria for this to apply, given a combination of medical conditions she suffered.
Kemp is booked in to undergo two separate serious surgeries, in January and March next year.
She also suffers from Crohn’s disease, and is unable to walk without crutches due to injuries suffered in the crash.
A letter from Justice Health presented to the court explained that if Kemp was jailed, her January and March surgeries would not be able to proceed when scheduled “for security reasons” and “may” be able to proceed later.
Judge Chettle, however, acknowledged that the consequences of Kemp not stopping at the intersection had been “catastrophic”.
“The loss and pain for so many people in indescribable,” he said.
“The ripple effect is far-reaching and the pain excruciating,” Judge Chettle said, referring to victim impact statements, including ones from Savannah’s mother, Bryana Kemp, as well as Elodie and Andrew Aldridge.
However, he said Kemp’s moral culpability was at the lower end of the scale, as the dangerous driving charge had simply come about because she had not seen the stop-sign-ahead warning signs that were 180m before the intersection and had not stopped at the intersection itself.
He said no alcohol, speeding, fatigue or mobile phone use had occurred.
Judge Chettle also noted that while both the warning signs and stop signs were clearly visible to a driver, long grass and vegetation obscured the views of any traffic on Boundary Rd.
He also said that there was no evidence before the court that said the outcome of the crash might have been different if Savannah was in a booster seat.
Judge Chettle ordered Kemp be assessed for a community corrections order, and said that if she was found suitable, he would place her on one for two years.
The order would include 250 hours of community service.
Kemp will be sentenced on Friday, November 22.
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