Tears in court as Christopher Hocking pleads not guilty over Victor Harbor Rd crash at Mount Jagged

A man accused of causing a horrific head-on crash on a notorious road has pleaded not guilty, with his alleged victims bursting into tears.

A driver accused of causing a horrific head-on collision on a notorious SA road has denied wrongdoing, with his alleged victims weeping in court.

Christopher Michael Hocking, 46, appeared in the Adelaide Magistrates Court on Tuesday charged over the near-fatal Victor Harbor Rd crash in July last year.

The collision at Mount Jagged resulted in Zoe Bennett, 26, being flown to hospital with life-threatening injuries – where she was given a permanent stent in her heart – while another woman sustained permanent scarring from a broken arm. Mr Hocking and his wife and children were also hospitalised.

Mr Hocking, of Port Noarlunga South, has pleaded not guilty to one count of cause serious harm by dangerous driving and five counts of cause harm by dangerous driving.

Mr Hocking leaves court with his wife earlier this year. Picture: Brett Hartwig

One of the alleged victims of the horrific Mount Jagged crash shows a scar along her arm. Picture: Charlie Dadds

Outside court, Ms Bennett said the only thing she remembered from the crash was “seeing him come at me”.

“That’s about it – that’s the last thing,” she said. “Other than that, I remember having a conversation with Logan (my son) about going to get a hot chocolate, then the next thing I remember is being told what happened when I woke up in the hospital days later.

“Every 12 months now I have to have a CAT scan on the stent to check on it.

“I’m still in physio for the chunk taken out of the back of my leg and to see if I can go back to work.”

Mr Hocking was arrested in July after police alleged he was driving a Mitsubishi ute travelling north on Victor Harbor Rd, before it crossed to the incorrect side of the road and collided head-on with a silver Subaru sedan.

Emergency services at the scene. Picture: 7NEWS

The driver of the Subaru sedan, a 26-year-old Tooperang woman, was flown to hospital in a critical condition. Her passengers – a 26-year-old woman and a seven-year-old boy – were also taken to hospital with serious injuries.

Mr Hocking and his passengers – his 43-year-old wife Laura Hocking and two young children – were all treated in hospital before being released.

The alleged victims of the crash – and their family members – were all present in court on Tuesday as Mr Hocking read out his not guilty pleas, which was met with audible tears.

Mr Hocking will now take his matter to trial in the District Court – where he will be arraigned in August.

Chief Magistrate Mary-Louise Hribal remanded the father-of-two on continuing bail.

Originally published as Tears in court as Christopher Hocking pleads not guilty over Victor Harbor Rd crash at Mount Jagged