Teenage passenger in stolen car that killed Nicole Tucker to be released from youth jail in six months
A 17-YEAR-OLD boy who admitted to being a passenger in a stolen car that crashed and killed mother-of-two Nicole Tucker has been sentenced to youth detention — but will be free in six months.
A 17-YEAR-OLD boy who admitted to being a passenger in a stolen car that crashed and killed mother-of-two Nicole Tucker has been sentenced to youth detention — but will be free in six months.
It came as Ms Tucker’s husband and an injured driver of another car involved in the crash delivered emotional victim impact statements in the Adelaide Youth Court.
The boy, who cannot be named because of his age, was sentenced on Friday for his involvement in a fiery smash at the intersection of Main South Rd and the Southern Expressway, Bedford Park, on October 6 last year.
Ms Tucker, 48, was killed when a stolen ute travelling at about 160km/h slammed into her vehicle at the intersection.
Other cars were also impacted during the smash.
The boy, who will turn 18 in March, was also handed penalties for another car theft in September as well as for his involvement in a riot at the Cavan Youth Training Centre in January.
He had pleaded guilty to all charges, which included serious criminal trespass and using a motor vehicle without consent.
The driver of the ute, a 15-year-old boy, has previously pleaded guilty to causing Ms Tucker’s death by dangerous driving and will be sentenced as an adult in the District Court next month.
On Friday, Senior Youth Court Judge Penelope Eldridge sentenced the 17-year-old to three terms of youth detention, which were to be served concurrently with one term of 4.5 months and another of 7.5 months backdated to when he was first incarcerated in October.
A third term of six months’ detention was to begin effective immediately, meaning he will be released in August this year.
It will be the boy’s fifth stint in juvenile detention.
He was also disqualified from driving for three years.
The court heard he had an extensive criminal history, which included being sentenced over 47 charges, 39 of which were recorded with a conviction.
Those charges related to break-ins, thefts, property damage and illegal interference with a motor vehicle.
Before the sentences were handed down, police prosecutor Simon Vigar read a victim impact statement from Ms Tucker’s husband, Brett, during which he described his partner as a “caring wife, mother, daughter, sister, aunty and friend to many”.
“Nicole put everyone else first, especially her children,” he said.
“I struggle to comprehend how their lives have changed forever with the loss of their mum.
“Nicole will never get to see the important milestones in her children’s lives — graduations from high school, special birthdays, weddings, grandchildren.
“She will also miss the routine events of taking the kids to school, walking the dog, working with her colleagues or choosing a formal dress for (her daughter).”
In his statement, Mr Tucker said one of the things he will miss most about Ms Tucker would be her “watching football and screaming at her beloved Crows”.
“Above all, you have taken my soulmate, our children’s’ best friend, a mother’s baby girl and a friend to so many for no apparent reason.”
Kathryn Howard was the driver of one of the cars that was written off in the crash and delivered an emotional victim impact statement in court.
“I lost a lot of faith in humanity that night,” she said.
“How could people leave knowing evidently that nobody was to escape Nicole’s car alive, and that they had hit other cars and may have caused death or other injuries?”
Ms Howard told the court she suffered mental, physical and emotional damage as a result of the crash.
“What you two boys did was put me in a position which I wouldn’t wish upon anybody,” she said.
“The effect on my son hurts me the most — I’m his mum and I can’t play with him like I used to.
“My son would ask me on occasions to not have any more accidents as he misses how his mummy was before her back got sick — it just breaks my heart.
“These boys may have had a troubled childhood and absent parents but here they are creating the same impact on three other children.
“He can claim he has a hard childhood and that life has been hard on them but we all have our own demons in life.”
Referring to the 17-year-old, Ms Howard said being a passenger “makes him no less liable” for Ms Tucker’s death.
“I cannot erase the images I saw that night nor the face of Nicole who tragically lost her life at your hands,” she said.
“This was no accident — those boys knew what the repercussions would be.”