Truck driver David Cameron sentenced for horror crash involving Ashleigh Allred

A Victorian truckie who dozed off at the wheel before causing a horror crash outside Canberra has learnt his fate in court while his victim continues to live with a ‘life sentence’.

David Cameron faced the Queanbeyan Local Court on August 29, 2023. Picture: Sam Turner

A Victorian truckie responsible for a catastrophic multi-vehicle crash near Canberra, leaving one woman as a paraplegic, has avoided jail.

David Cameron will instead serve his prison sentence of nine months in the community after he dozed off behind the wheel and collided with Yass mother Ashleigh Allred and rocketed her into multiple cars.

“Nine months?” Ms Allred said over the phone while remotely viewing Queanbeyan Local Court on Tuesday.

The 60-year-old from Bendoc in East Gippsland admitted to causing the crash on April 13, 2022 after he pleaded guilty to four counts of causing bodily harm by misconduct in charge of a motor vehicle and negligent driving occasioning grievous bodily harm.

Dashcam footage from Cameron’s logging truck played to the court previously showed the moment Ms Allred was driven into by the Bendoc man’s prime mover along the Barton Hwy in Wallaroo, which pushed her into several other cars.

David Cameron.

The court heard the crash was so severe Ms Allred was trapped in her vehicle before she was freed by emergency services. She spent 13 days in an induced coma and a total of 232 days in hospital.

Ms Allred is now a paraplegic.

In his decision Magistrate Roger Clisdell said it was “remarkable” no one was killed given the “carnage”.

Mr Clisdell accepted the Bendoc man may have fallen asleep on the clear stretch of road before he collided with the vehicles stationary at roadworks.

The Queanbeyan magistrate said Ms Allred’s victim impact statement was “compelling and emotional”.

“The harm to her is immense,” he said.

Ashleigh Allred. Picture: Facebook

Cameron spoke to police after the crash and said he “hit the skids hard” before the crash, however, investigators revealed there were no brake marks.

The magistrate said it was concerning Cameron falsely told police this but cited Cameron’s affidavit where he conceded he “could not think straight” immediately after the crash.

Cameron’s defence team previously submitted the volunteer firefighter suffered from sleep apnoea which could lead to sudden onset sleep.

Mr Clisdell agreed, and said the experienced truck driver of more than 30 years was well regarded and respected in his community.

He accepted the 60-year-old’s genuine remorse however said Ms Allred was given a life sentence with her injuries and no court order could take away the “terrible consequences” of April 13, 2022.

The 60-year-old was sentenced to an intensive correction order of nine months and disqualified from driving for 18 months.