John Murphy: Canberra father and roofer sentenced for hitting cyclist after multiple Hard Solos
A Canberra dad and tradie has been sentenced for slamming into a cyclist and causing catastrophic injuries after a big night on the booze.
A Canberra dad and tradie has been sentenced for slamming into a cyclist and causing catastrophic injuries after a big night on the booze.
John Luke Murphy, 25, faced ACT Magistrates Court for sentencing on Thursday after pleading guilty to a charge of culpable driving of a motor vehicle - causing grievous bodily harm to another person.
It marks Murphy’s second drink driving offence, the first handed to him in 2020 while he was still on his provisional plates.
The court heard on Thursday Murphy, who owns his own roofing company with his two brothers, got “black out drunk” on May 17 last year – consuming four schooners and two pints of Hard Solo.
Agreed facts state Murphy took an uber home before continuing to consume another five cans of Hard-Solo.
The next morning he hopped in his car before swerving into a bike lane and collecting a cyclist, who rolled up over the windshield.
The victim was on the ground unconscious with his airway blocked, it was heard in court.
A passing car driven by off-duty medical professionals saved the cyclists life.
Murphy was slurring “sorry” in the aftermath of the collision, it was heard in court.
He was taken to Woden Police Station where mandatory testing returned a positive reading for alcohol.
The roofer blew a 0.142 — almost three times over the legal limit.
At the station, Murphy was heard to have made various comments such as “motorbikes sneak up behind you” and was seen laughing into his phone telling someone “I hit a cyclist” which was recorded by police body-worn cameras.
Murphy told a person on the other end of the call that the victim “probably shouldn’t have been” on the road because he did not “pay rego”.
Magistrate Alexandra Burt stated that the “comments made at the police station have a victim blaming overtone.”
The victim was in hospital for more than a month and suffered a traumatic brain injury, amnesia, cognitive impairments, five vertebrae fractures on his spine, limb injuries and developed multiple adjustment disorders.
As of April 15 the victim is still receiving ongoing treatment — almost 20 months after the accident.
Ms Burt also said the victim “has an increased risk of Parkinson's at a later point in life” and that “he would’ve certainly died without medical intervention” from the off-duty medics that witnessed the crash driving past.
“It will take months or years for him to fully recover ... there is permanent and long-lasting consequences of pain,” she said.
It was also heard in court Murphy’s partner guided the writing of his letter of remorse for the victim.
The Magistrate shamed Murphy by saying: “You did not write that letter yourself ... it’s not clear whether those words were yours.”
Murphy was told his offending was “right on the cusp of going to jail.”
He was sentenced to an intensive community corrections order for 28 months with 250 hours of community service.
He is banned from drinking alcohol and has been disqualified from driving for 26 months.
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