Final day of trial for youth accused of killing Millicent’s Ned and Nan Walker and Sue Skeer in Mount Gambier crash

Was he on the wrong side of the road? Crash experts have given a court conflicting opinions in the trial of a teenager accused of killing three family members in a head-on crash.

A mechanical engineer says simulations show a learner driver accused of killing three people in a horror crash was driving “pretty much fully” on the correct side of the road, a court has heard.
The 17-year-old, whose identity is suppressed by law, has pleaded not guilty to three counts of causing death and four counts of causing harm by dangerous driving.

Ned and Nan Walker, and their daughter Sue Skeer, died in the head-on crash on the Princes Highway at Suttontown, near Mount Gambier, on November 28, 2020.

Opening the boy’s Youth Court trial in Mount Gambier on Tuesday, prosecutor Aimee Winra said the boy was driving a Toyota LandCruiser on the incorrect side of the road when it collided with a Ford Territory driven by Mrs Walker.

Mr Walker, 80, Mrs Walker, 77, and Ms Skeer, 55, all from Millicent – died instantly.

Sue Skeer, left, and her parents Ned and Nan Walker. Picture: Supplied

A Christmas message left at the memorial where Ned and Nan Walker and their daughter Sue Skeer lost their lives in a head-on collision in November 2020. Picture: Jessica Ball

Giving evidence on Wednesday, crash reconstructionist David Kuchenmeister, said he formed the opinion it was the boy’s car that veered on to the incorrect side of the road and caused the crash.

However, mechanical engineer Christopher Hall on Friday said Senior Sergeant Kuchenmeister’s opinion on how the cars collided “defied the laws of physics” and was “impossible”.

Mr Hall said he ran simulations more than 100 times to determine the cars’ positions at the time of impact.

“The best fit for that was for the Toyota (driven by the boy) almost parallel to the centre line and colliding while pretty much fully on its correct side of the road,” he said.

The court heard the boy told police after the crash he had “zoned out” and was thinking about school when he veered on to the wrong side of the road.

Bill Boucaut SC, for the boy, said his client’s drifting on to the incorrect side of the road was “momentary” and he was alerted by his mother, who was his supervising driver, to correct.

Giving evidence on Thursday, Mount Gambier Hospital paediatrician, Daham de Silva, told the court the boy had previously been diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).

Dr de Silva said he prescribed the boy the drug Vyvanse – a long-acting stimulant medication, which reduces distractibility and increases concentration – in February 2020.

He said he was not aware that the boy had stopped taking the medication.

The court heard it was agreed by the boy’s counsel that he stopped taking Vyvanse in May 2020.

The 17-year-old who cannot be identified is pictured leaving Mount Gambier Magistrates Court at an earlier appearance. Picture: Kathryn Bermingham

In the Adelaide Youth Court this month, counsel for the boy made a final attempt to keep the victims’ family out of the courtroom.

Judge Penny Eldridge rejected the submission, saying the media and the victims’ families were entitled to be there.

However only five members of the combined Walker family were permitted into the courtroom until the last day of the trial.

Casey Walker, the granddaughter of Ned and Nan Walker, told The Advertiser it had been an “absolute slap in the face”.

A spare courtroom and staff were made available on Friday so all members of the victim’s family could attend.

Judge Eldridge adjourned the trial until next week for closing submissions.