Jake McGee awaits sentencing for driving under the influence of drugs before crashing into tree, injuring passengers in St Kilda
A young driver left his teenage passenger with a horror brain injury and blind in one eye after he was snorting MDMA and daring other cars to race before a crash.
A young driver was drunk and high on drugs when he crashed into a tree, leaving a teenager with a serious brain injury and blind in one eye, a court has heard.
Jake McGee, 20, was trying to race other cars shortly before the horror crash but has now begged the court to show him mercy.
McGee was driving a Ford Explorer SUV when it left the road and hit a tree on St Kilda Rd about 5.30pm on December 28 last year.
A prosecutor told the District Court on Tuesday that McGee had been drinking with Tracey Knuckey, 20, Ethan-Jay Harley Wilton, 19, Phoenix Jason Calyun, 23 and Hollie Mai Wilton, 18, before they went for a drive.
“Ms Knuckey observed the defendant drinking a Cruiser while he was driving and observed him smoking cannabis in the car,” the prosecutor said.
The court heard McGee at one point pulled up next to another vehicle at the lights and said “I’ll race you”, before speeding off when the lights turned green.
The prosecutor said McGee also later snorted a line of MDMA before he later pulled over and threw up out of the car window.
“At that time, Mr Calyun told the defendant not to drive,” the prosecutor said.
The court heard one of McGee’s passengers told him to “stop driving like a d***head” shortly before the crash, to which he replied “don’t you trust my driving?”
The horror crash left Ms Wilton unconscious and she had to be cut out of the car.
“She had emergency surgery to remove the front part of her skull … she was put into a deep coma,” the prosecutor said.
The court heard Ms Wilton spent months in the brain injury rehabilitation unit for her serious brain injury, and lost vision in her right eye.
Mr Wilton and Mr Calyun suffered minor injuries, while Ms Knuckey suffered fractures to vertebrae and was in hospital for two days.
McGee, of Elizabeth Vale, pleaded guilty to aggravated cause serious harm by dangerous driving and a further three counts of aggravated cause harm by dangerous driving and one count of driving while disqualified, which followed a previous drug driving disqualification.
The court heard his estimated blood-alcohol concentration at the time of the crash was 0.169, as well as having MDMA and cannabis in his system.
Michael Dzodzos, for McGee, pushed for a suspended or home detention sentence, saying his client was young and extremely remorseful for the offending.
The court heard McGee, who had written a letter of apology to his victims, was working as a concreter and was the sole breadwinner for his family.
McGee, who was allowed to remain on bail, will be sentenced next month.
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Originally published as Jake McGee awaits sentencing for driving under the influence of drugs before crashing into tree, injuring passengers in St Kilda
