Community detention for killing cyclist

WELLINGTON: A texting driver has been sentenced for a crash that killed cyclist Brent Norriss in Wellington.

Khing Tiang Wong (47) was driving on State Highway 2 towards Lower Hutt from Wellington about 6pm on February 3, at the same time Mr Norriss (65) was cycling home in the marked cycle lane, the summary of facts said.

Wong, who had a camera mounted in his vehicle, was driving about 90kmh in the left lane amid peak traffic, on his way to a client’s house to pick up some money that was owed to him, the summary said.

‘‘Further analysis of the defendant’s phone shows that at 6.10:33pm the defendant began a text message to the woman whose address he was driving to, which consisted of ‘I’. This message was later deleted,’’ the summary said.

Camera footage from the NZ Transport Agency shows Wong’s vehicle rounding the corner near the BP Express Fuel forecourt and beginning to travel in a straight line instead of following the gentle curve of the road.

‘‘The defendant’s vehicle veers further to the left and he continues driving nearly entirely within the cycle lane and directly behind the deceased on his bicycle.’’

Camera footage from several sources shows Mr Norriss cycling well to the left in the cycle lane.

He was wearing an orange hivisibility vest and his bicycle was equipped with a rear facing red flashing light.

At 6.11:07pm, while still within the cycle lane, Wong’s vehicle pulled sharply right, colliding heavily into the rear wheel of Mr Norriss’ bicycle, catapulting him through the air and causing him to hit the Armco barrier that was positioned between the petrol station and the northbound lanes.

Passersby including two doctors tried desperately to save Norriss’ life, but he died at the scene due to multiple blunt force trauma injuries.

Wong’s phone analysis shows he began writing another message, which also consisted of ‘‘I’’ at 6.11:20pm, 13 seconds after he ploughed into Norriss. This text was also later deleted.

Wong again started writing a text message — or reactivated the original text — a little over 10 minutes after the crash, but again deleted the text.

He pleaded guilty in the Hutt Valley District Court at an earlier hearing to dangerous driving causing death.

Wong appeared in court again yesterday for sentencing before Judge Quentin Hix, who described Norriss as an ‘‘excellent family man’’.

Hix said there were no aggravating features to the offending, and that he needed to take into account factors such as Wong’s early guilty plea, his ‘‘genuine remorse’’, and the fact he is financially supporting his mother, who lives in Malaysia.

He noted Wong had offered to pay reparation of $11,000.

Judge Hix sentenced Wong to six months of community detention with a curfew of 8pm to 5am daily, and disqualified him from driving for 18 months. — The New Zealand Herald