Appeal adds insult to injury
A FORMER Dunedin principal who was severely injured by a negligent driver says he has suffered ‘‘another smack in the head’’.
Though the latest blow was metaphorical, it has caused Craig Hickford significant pain.
Harry Simon McArthur (29) appealed his sentence before the High Court at Dunedin on Monday, following his March sentencing when he was ordered to complete 200 hours’ community work, pay the victim
$30,000 and banned from driving for 10 months.
Mr Hickford
— the former principal of
Brockville Full
Primary
School, and a keen sportsman — was riding his bike downhill in
Main Rd, Fairfield, on February 14 last year when McArthur made a right turn into
Flower St into his path.
The cyclist hit the front of the ute and was catapulted through the air, landing on the grass verge.
Mr Hickford suffered a severe traumatic brain injury and was rushed to Dunedin Hospital’s intensivecare unit where he spent weeks recovering.
His rehabilitation is ongoing and he has been forced to give up work to focus on his recuperation.
Speaking from his parents’ house in New Plymouth, he said the appeal had brought emotions to the surface again.
‘‘He sees himself as so important that he doesn’t need to, in effect, do his punishment,’’ he said of the defendant.
Counsel Jono Ross told the court McArthur, an equine dentist, did not dispute the driving disqualification or the reparation figure, but claimed the communitywork term was ‘‘manifestly excessive’’.
‘‘The sentencing judge overstated the level of carelessness exhibited by the offender,’’ Mr Ross said.
He said Judge Dominic Flatley placed too much weight on McArthur’s previous ‘‘cavalier approach to driving’’, which featured three convictions for careless driving, one for dangerous driving and one for failing to stop after a crash.
Mr Ross believed a fairer penalty would be one of 40 hours’ community work.
Crown prosecutor Richard Smith said McArthur’s poor driving was not only reflected in his convictions, but also in demerit points and infringements he had racked up behind the wheel.
He said Judge Flatley’s assessment of the carelessness as moderate was ‘‘generous’’.
‘‘Essentially, the defendant made the admission he had turned into oncoming traffic without a clear ability to see,’’ Mr Smith said.
The fact McArthur had never injured anyone else on the road was ‘‘a matter of fortune’’, he told Justice Cameron Mander.
‘‘The issue is he hasn’t learned his lesson,’’ Mr Smith said. ‘‘Previous sentences haven’t deterred his offending.’’
While the court had to take note of the cash the defendant had offered to the victim, the prosecutor said it was no reason to reduce the sentence.
‘‘There shouldn’t be a situation where someone can buy themselves a lenient sentence with a large reparation payment,’’ he said.
He accepted the district court sentence was ‘‘stern’’ but argued it should remain unchanged.
Mr Hickford said he had been surprised to learn McArthur had been granted a limited licence shortly after sentencing so he could drive for work purposes.
‘‘He’s still a danger to everybody,’’ he said. ‘‘It doesn’t really say much about the law.’’
In March, Mr Hickford said outside court he would consider meeting McArthur if he was willing to apologise.
Now his attitude had changed.
‘‘The door’s well and truly closed right now. I’ve washed my hands of him really,’’ he said.
Justice Mander reserved his decision.