New driving charges for Springfield man Robert Alan Derks sentenced over woman‘s road death

A Springfield man who previously served jail time for vehicular manslaughter has returned to court more than a decade later for what a magistrate said was concerningly similar offending.

A Springfield man who previously pleaded guilty to vehicular manslaughter has faced sentence for drunk driving.

Robert Alan Derks, 33, pleaded guilty on September 9, 2022, to dangerous operation of a motor vehicle, driving without a licence, driving under the influence of liquor, driving an unregistered vehicle and driving an uninsured vehicle.

The court heard Derks was previously convicted in 2011 for manslaughter and dangerous operation of a vehicle, which resulted in the death of a 50-year-old woman.

Derks was towards the end of his parole for that offending when he reoffended this January.

The court heard the police saw Derks driving an “extensively damaged” car, emitting smoke, in Redbank Plains around 5.10pm on January 29.

The police followed, and Derks’s speed increased to 100km/h in the 50km/h residential zone, where Magistrate Robert Walker noted “there were possibly children playing on the footpath and members of the public walking in the area”.

“The risk of serious injury or worse was readily apparent,” he said.

Derks was seen overtaking a white ute, which took evasive action, and eventually stopped when the police caught up.

They found he had a blood alcohol concentration 0.211 per cent, and Derks admitted he had consumed six to 12 cans of bourbon between 11am and 4pm that day.

“Perhaps that level of intoxication provides some sort of explanation for absolutely irrational decision-making on your part and flagrantly dangerous behaviour,” said Mr Walker.

He noted the “high degree of similarity” to Derks’ previous offending.

“What concerns me is that whilst you were on parole for those offences and, having been sentenced to significant periods of imprisonment for them, you were not deterred from embarking a course of dangerous conduct of a similar nature,” he said.

Defence lawyer Richard Zande said Derks had “suffered from a long period of mental health problems” and “had nothing less than a terrible upbringing”.

He also noted this was Derks first offending since 2011, and that Derks had good prospects of employment and the support of his sister.

Mr Walker said he would take Derks’s presentence custody of 179 days into account, but couldn’t declare it time-served.

Derks received a head sentence of 12 months imprisonment, cumulative to the 2011 sentence he is still serving.

Derks was granted immediate parole eligibility and was disqualified from driving for a further two years.

Convictions were recorded.