Man gets 12 years for crash at funeral

A CAIRNS Supreme Court Justice said the actions of a Cape York man, who deliberately drove a vehicle into a home filled with mourners, “smacked of extraordinary self- indulgence”.

Twenty victim i mpact statements were handed up during the sentencing heari ng for Garry Paul Hudson, who was j ailed for 12 years for killing Delanne Zingle and seriously i njuring eight others.

On October 7, 2016 Hudson got into his vehicle, which was parked outside 184 Kowanyama St, drove to a vacant lot and then drove at speed ploughing into the lounge area of the home, which was filled with people mourning over his dead partner Katherine George’s coffin.

“And then surely not blind to the carnage that at least in the general sense you’d just wrought you repeated the entire process a second time,” Justice James Henry said.

As a result the coffin was smashed open, Ms George’s body was flung to the floor and Ms Zingle was killed.

“As provocative as the circumstances have been, your reaction smacked not only of feelings of grief, upset, anger and betrayal … but they also smacked of extraordinary self- indulgence, selfishness, a complete disregard really for the safety and wellbeing of anyone other than yourself,” Justice Henry said.

The victim impact statements painted a harrowing picture of pain and suffering for those involved.

Hudson must serve 80 per cent of the sentence before he is eligible for parole.