John Nichols, Ruth Limn: Man who crushed grandmother with 4WD sentenced to jail
A father-of-seven who in a fit of rage ploughed his 4WD into a grandmother, crushing her between two vehicles before yelling at her family “I wish I’d killed her”, has been sentenced to jail.
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A father-of-seven who in a fit of rage ploughed his 4WD into a grandmother, crushing her between two vehicles before yelling at her family “I wish I’d killed her”, has been sentenced to jail.
John Spiro Nichols, 50, was convicted for the wild 2016 incident in Busby, which left doctors fighting to save the left leg of grandmother-of-ten Ruth Limn, 54.
The court heard during rising tensions between the two feuding families, fuelled by street brawls and verbal altercations, about 10.30pm Ms Limn had been waiting outside for her son to arrive to celebrate her daughter’s birthday and blow out the candles.
It was at this moment Nichols, banned for life from ever holding a driver’s licence, accelerated at a car on her front lawn and pinned her between the two vehicles.
In a victim impact statement, read by Judge Julia Baly, Ms Limn revealed she still woke up at night screaming as she relived the terror.
“It has been four years of letting life pass me by, instead of living it with my loved ones,” the statement said.
The agreed facts, tendered to the court, reveal a dispute between Nichols’s son and a member of the Phippen family had led to a fiery street fight between the two family patriarchs, resulting in the arrest of Kevin Phippen, Ruth Limn’s husband. He was later released without charge.
Hours later, Nichols is alleged to have attacked the car of Kylie Phippen, the daughter of Ms Limn, with a metal pole as she drove past later that night. Nichols says this didn’t happen.
Later that night the 50-year-old stood out the front of his house and yelled words to the effect of “I will kill you f**king c**ts” and hopped into a Toyota Landcruiser, sped down the street and ultimately crushed Ms Limm, the agreed facts stated.
Ms Baly said Nichols’s actions were impulsive and “borne out of anger” and that he had little hope of rehabilitation.
The 50-year-old, who has a history of violent convictions, had his sentence discounted by 10 per cent for his guilty plea on the first day of the trial earlier this year.
He was convicted of four offences, including cause reckless grievous bodily harm, and sentenced to five years jail, with a non-parole period of three years. He will be eligible for parole in February 2023.