A Pakistani disability carer who she crashed an NDIS van and killed a wheelchair-bound grandmother in South Australia is set to be spared jail.
Mahnoor Malik, 21, was driving Debbie Johnston, 59, on a family holiday in a disability transport van in Hayborough near Victor Harbor in September last year when she “misjudged” a turn and hit the accelerator instead of the brake, causing the vehicle to hit a tree.
Ms Johnston was killed in the collision and Malik and a 30-year-old female passenger were taken to hospital with non-life threatening injuries.
Malik pleaded guilty to causing death by careless driving and aggravated driving without due care in March, and faced Adelaide Magistrate Court on Tuesday where the prosecutor said he would not oppose a suspended prison sentence, but asked for a conviction to be imposed, ABC News reported.
The prosecutor cited Malik’s young age, genuine remorse, clean criminal record and excellent prospects of rehabilitation in explaining why she should be spared jail, and said she was not speeding at the time of the crash.
Malik’s lawyer James Marcus said his client was suffering from “survivor guilt” and said she had frequently cared for Ms Johnston while working for an NDIS provider.
“She cared for Ms Johnston both literally and emotionally, and the fact she was responsible for her death weighs extremely heavily on her … [she] doesn’t sleep at night,” he said.
“This is a moment of misjudgment that has led to tragic and completely unintended consequences, tragic in the truest sense of the word.”
He asked Magistrate John Clover to not only suspend any jail term to be imposed, but also spare his client a conviction so as not to negatively affect her ability to find a job in the future.
The court heard Malik had only driven the van a handful of times, 7 News reported.
Malik will be sentenced next month.
Header image: Left, Mahnoor Malik outside court. Right, the scene of the crash (7 News).
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