NSW Police call for introduction of new road crime offence, 25-year maximum jai term after petition by Sydney mother Angelina Kauffman

Maximum penalties for serious road-related deaths could be increased from 14 to 25 years in prison as part of a NSW Police proposal to address concerns that current laws are failing victims and their families.

NSW Police have called for a new criminal offence to be introduced for serious road crimes in the wake of a tragic alleged hit-and-run collision that resulted in the deaths of two Sydney siblings last year.

Maximum penalties for serious road-related deaths could be increased from 14 to 25 years in prison as part of a NSW Police proposal to address concerns that current laws are failing both victims and their families.

The proposal follows a petition started by Angelina Kauffman, whose children, Alina Kauffman, 24, and Ernesto Salazar 15, died in Heckenberg last year when their car was struck by alleged disqualified driver Johnson Kokozian.

Police allege Kokozian was travelling at double the speed limit, on the wrong side of the road in a stolen car, at the time of the crash before fleeing the scene.

Kokozian is currently before the courts charged with 11 offences, including two counts of dangerous driving occasioning death. He has not entered any pleas in relation to the charges.

Alina Kauffman.

Ernesto Salazar.

The petition, signed by more than more than 20,000 people, called for the current maximum penalty for aggravated dangerous driving occasioning death to be increased from 14 years in prison.

Supporters of the petition argue current laws often treat road deaths as a lesser form of crime compared to other offences such as manslaughter, despite the trauma left behind for families and communities.

The NSW Law Reform Commission is reviewing whether the maximum sentences for serious road crimes remain appropriate, and if new offences should be introduced to reflect the outcome and costs on the community.

NSW Police – in a submission to the review – has called for a new offence called “specially aggravated dangerous driving occasioning death” to be introduced in the state, with a penalty of up to 25 years’ imprisonment.

Angelina Kauffman, whose children Alina and Ernesto were killed in a road crash last year, is an advocate for change. Picture: Julian Andrews

The offence would apply in incidents involving two or more aggravating factors such as alcohol, drugs, speed, if an accused person is driving a vehicle to escape a police pursuit, or if driving while unlicensed, suspended or disqualified.

Other factors include whether a driver is using a phone at the time of impact, engaged in street racing or competitive driving, impacted by high fatigue, or driving a stolen car.

NSW Police said the tougher penalty would send a “strong community message” that “society will not tolerate such acts”.

The crash in Heckenberg prompted a petition calling for tougher road laws in NSW.

“Importantly, it will also provide a clear set of qualifying factors or criteria for when this offence would apply, which will reduce complexity, and in turn assist police and the courts.”

If supported by the law reform commission, NSW Police have suggested government agencies and potentially media outlets could use the term “vehicular homicide” when referring to serious road offences to help educate the community of the seriousness of the offence.

The NSW Government says it is awaiting the findings of the commission’s review and is committed to ensuring road laws are “fit for purpose and move with changing circumstances”.

NSW Attorney-General Michael Daley, in a statement to The Daily Telegraph, said “serious road crime causes untold misery and suffering for those involved – the victims as well as their families and friends”.

NSW Attorney-General Michael Daley.

The law reform review is also considering the rights and experiences of victims of serious road crimes and their families in the criminal justice system.

But the review has heard mixed opinions from advocacy and legal groups about potential changes to legislation.

The Law Society of NSW – the peak organisation representing the state’s lawyers – has argued the current maximum sentences are “appropriate” given the legislation is “already among the highest across all Australian jurisdictions”.

NSW Police, however, say sentencing trends for serious road crime result have resulted in inadequate sentences that “may not meet public expectations or provide sufficient deterrence”.