Re: Driver who killed motorcyclist given single day in jail, (News, Dec. 12)
Recently, someone who killed someone else while driving impaired on cocaine and alcohol learned their fate.
One day in jail, which means walking in, signing a few papers and then going home. She also received a 10 year driving ban, but there are lots of people driving with no licences already.
One of the reasons cited by the judge was that she had been in rehab since then and was a different person than she was on the day that she took an innocent life.
As disadvantaged as this woman’s life might have been, she has been addicted to intoxicants since she was 15 years old, probably imperiled many lives over the last 20 years and when she does finally kill someone she’s miraculously a completely changed person?
Another reason cited is because she had the cognitive ability of a nine-year-old. Our girl was once nine and I can assure you she wouldn’t know how start a car and get it into gear let alone navigate it to a predetermined destination. She knew what she was doing and she knew it was against the law, just as nine-year-olds know impaired driving is against the law.
I wonder if a sentence by a jury of her peers would impose the same sentence as the judge or if it would be more in line with societal expectations.
Bob Broughton
Victoria