Cooper McGinley sentenced for mowing down Jennifer Thompson on the Northern Expressway and fleeing scene

The young man who mowed down a crashed, drunk driver on the Northern Expressway before fleeing the scene has has avoided jail, due to the unusual circumstances.

The man who mowed down a drunk driver on the Northern Expressway before fleeing the scene has been sentenced, with his lawyer noting it was a tragedy for all involved.

Cooper Leslie McGinley, 24, walked free after a judge noted the unusual circumstances of the horror crash that occurred at Ward Belt in June, 2021.

During sentencing on Monday, the District Court heard the victim, Jennifer Thompson was more than four times the legal limit when she lost control of her car and crashed in the middle of the Northern Expressway.

A Holden driver who was travelling ahead of McGinley saw the car and veered to the left of the road to avoid it before spinning out of control.

The court heard McGinley, who was driving a Mitsubishi Triton, veered to the right and struck Ms Thompson, who was walking on the grass strip.

Cooper McGinley was handed a suspended sentence. Picture: Ben Clark

McGinley kept driving before stopping 1.5km down the road, telling officers on scene he pulled over because his car was shaking.

The court heard cannabis and methamphetamine were found in his system.

Judge Paul Muscat said he didn’t accept McGinley’s submission that he didn’t realise he had hit a person, but rather a speed hump, as there were human hair fibres found in the windscreen wipers.

Victim impact statements were read to the court earlier this month by the investigating officer.

Ms Thompson’s fiance, Naomi Lamberts said she grieves for all the memories and times she now won’t have with the “love of her life”.

“Cooper you left Jen to die alone in pain,” she said.

“You took everything away from us Cooper, you have tainted our memories of Jen with heartache and despair and stolen our future.”

Ms Thompson’s son, Caleb told the court he would now miss out sharing many milestones with his mother, including having her hold his children or being there on his wedding day.

Jennifer Thompson with her son Caleb. Picture: Facebook

“I never even got a chance to say goodbye and I love you and I have to live with that for the rest of my life because the honour of being able to grow up got stolen from me,” he said.

McGinley pleaded guilty to leaving the scene after causing death and aggravated driving without due care.

The court heard McGinley, who has an intellectual disability, suffered critical injuries while he was a passenger in a horror crash in 2017, which killed his best friend.

Judge Muscat sentenced McGinley to one year and nine months jail, with a non-parole period of 10 months.

“At the very least a concern for a fellow human requires you to do the right thing morally and you didn’t even do that,” he said.

However, due to the unusual circumstances of the case, the sentence was suspended on a two-year good behaviour bond.

McGinley was also disqualified from driving for ten years.

Outside court, McGinley’s lawyer, Stacey Carter told media the sentence for these cases never reflected the worth of a person’s life.

“It is a tragic case for everyone involved – the victim’s family but also Mr McGinley. It’s good to see the end of the proceedings,” she said.

Originally published as Cooper McGinley sentenced for mowing down Jennifer Thompson on the Northern Expressway and fleeing scene