Inquest into whether youth should have been allowed to drive after Ned and Nan Walker and daughter Sue Skeer killed in head-on collision in 2020

A learner driver off his medication for ADHD killed three family members after he lost concentration but his mother has insisted in an inquest he was an “extremely good driver”.

Nan Walker and daughter Sue Skeer. Picture: Supplied by the family

A learner driver with ADHD who killed three family members ticked that he did not have any medical conditions that may impair his ability to drive, an inquest has heard.

However, the boy’s mother insisted he was “an extremely good driver” despite the fact he had stopped taking his ADHD medication without a doctor’s knowledge.

Opening the inquest on Tuesday, counsel assisting Martin Kirby told the court Nan Walker, 77, her husband Ned Walker, 80, and their daughter Sue Skeer, 55, were driving along the Princes Highway towards Mount Gambier on November 28, 2020.

The 16-year-old learner driver, who cannot be legally identified, was driving a Toyota Landcruiser from the opposite direction.

The court heard he momentarily lost concentration and allowed his vehicle to cross the centre lines into the oncoming lane.

“Mrs Walker, upon seeing the Toyota Landcruiser took evasive action in order to try and avoid the oncoming vehicle by veering her Ford Territory to the right,” Mr Kirby said.

However, the boy then corrected his own vehicle which brought them both into a head-on collision in his lane.

Mrs Walker, Mr Walker, and Mrs Skeer died at the scene as a result of multiple injuries sustained in the collision.

Sue Skeer, 55 and her parents Ned Walker, 80 and Nan Walker 77, were killed in the head-on collision in 2020. Picture: Supplied by the family

Millicent's Ned and Nan Walker, Picture: Supplied by the family.

The court heard their deaths were a “horrific and traumatic” incident for the family and extended community.

Mr and Mrs Walker were popular figures in the horse racing scene and well regarded in the community, which their “loud and crazy” daughter Sue was also much loved and considered a second mother to her daughter’s children.

In 2022, Judge Penny Eldridge found the boy not guilty of dangerous driving but guilty on lesser charges, including five aggravated counts of driving without due care, causing death and serious harm in the first four counts and driving without due care for the remaining three counts.

He was sentenced to a 12-month good behaviour bond, with no convictions recorded, and disqualified from driving for 18-months.

At the time of applying for his learner’s permit in July 2020, the boy had been diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder, ADHD and Tourette syndrome but did not disclose those conditions on his driver’s licence application.
The court heard he had previously been prescribed Vyvanse, a medication for ADHD, as he had issues with concentration but had ceased taking this without his doctor’s knowledge in May 2020.

Mr Kirby said the inquest would focus on the question whether the youth was fit to drive a vehicle in the first place.

On Tuesday, the boy’s mother was asked why they answered no to the question about whether there were any medical conditions, including neurological disorders that might have impaired her son’s competency to drive.

“We both agreed it should be a no,” she replied.

“None of his conditions are severe enough to impair his competency to drive.”

Deputy State Coroner Naomi Kereru asked the mother how she came to the view that her son’s medical impairments would not affect his ability to drive.

“Because my parents had a farm and we rode motorbikes and drove cars … he’s an extremely good driver,” she replied.

The boy’s mother said she made the decision to take her son off Vyvanse due to aggression issues but said she never saw him losing attention or zoning out during driving lessons.

However, the court heard a doctor determined he had a sleep disorder during an assessment after the crash as he had “dozed off” during the hour and a half session.

Outside court, Ned and Nan’s daughters, Kerry-Lee Bromley and Jacqui Verbena, their daughter-in-law, Mary-Anne Walker and Sue’s daughter, Amy Haines told media the collision could have been avoided and they wanted to see changes around licencing laws.

Kerri-Lee Bromley, Mary-Anne Walker and Jacqui Verbena. Photo: Lucy Rutherford

Mary-Anne Walker, Kerri-Lee Bromley and Amy Haines outside the Coroners Court. Photo: Lucy Rutherford

“I’ve had three kids and I put them through learners … they’re not perfect, they’re going to make mistakes,” Ms Bromley said.

“For her (the boy’s mother) to say he’s a perfect driver it’s not feasible.”

“If the right boxes and stuff had been done we wouldn’t be standing here today,” Ms Haines commented.

The inquest continues.