Melita Ebony Moran pleads guilty to dangerous driving

CCTV footage from a regional shop showed the a 21-year-old woman using her car as a ‘weapon’ to smash into a passenger door of another person’s vehicle, a court has heard.

Melita Ebony Moran was sentenced for randomly driving her car into another person’s vehicle.

A 21-year-old woman’s behaviour has been labelled “bizarre” by a Gympie Magistrate upon hearing how she rammed her vehicle into another person’s car at a shop for no clear reason.

Melita Ebony Moran pleaded guilty in Gympie Magistrates Court via video link on April 3, 2023 to one count of possessing meth, one of dangerously operating a vehicle and one of driving without a licence and her licence was disqualified by court.

Police prosecutor Melissa Campbell told the court the victim parked her car near a petrol pump at the Victory Store in Victory Heights on January 3, 2022.

Moran was inside by the counter when she spotted the victim walking towards the entrance, the court heard.

She then ran at “high speed” out of the shop past the victim, jumped in the driver’s seat of her own car parked near the front of the shop, reversed it and then drove “intentionally and dangerously” into the victim’s car, the court heard.

She rammed the front door of the victim’s car, pushing the car towards the petrol pump before reversing and driving away towards Gympie.

“If it smashed through the petrol bowser and put fuel everywhere in such a public place, it could cause enormous impact,” Sgt Campbell said.

Sgt Campbell said CCTV footage captured the incident.

About six weeks later on February 16, 2023, Moran was arrested on a warrant at Gympie.

Police found meth inside her handbag weighing 0.27g including the ziplock bag it was in.

Moran has remained in custody since.

Her lawyer told the court Moran was mother to a five-year-old daughter and received the Newstart allowance.

Magistrate Chris Callaghan inquired about the reason for her offending, only to be told it was unknown.

“I can only presume she had some animosity towards the owner of the car,” Mr Callaghan said.

“Your driving was abhorrent.

“You used your vehicle as a weapon to damage this other vehicle.”

Mr Callaghan said she was only 21 but had a “shocking criminal history” with convictions since 2021 including drug, weapon and stealing offences.

She was sentenced to 12 months jail to be released on parole on May 15, 2023.

Her 47 days in custody were declared as time served.

Her licence was disqualified for two and a half years.