Oatlands crash: Samuel Davidson to plead guilty to manslaughter
The driver accused of fatally mowing down four children after he took a cocktail of drugs will plead guilty to seven out of 34 charges, a court heard, as the grieving family said ‘nothing’s changed’ since the incident that ripped them apart.
Parramatta
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The driver accused of fatally mowing down four children on a quiet Sydney street after he took a cocktail of drugs will plead guilty to seven out of 34 charges, a court heard, as the grieving family said “nothing’s changed”.
Samuel William Davidson, 30, was allegedly drunk and high on drugs when he lost control of his ute and struck a group of seven children who were walking together in Oatlands on February 1.
Four of the children — siblings Antony, 13, Angelina, 12, and Sienna Abdallah, 9, and their cousin, Veronique Sakr, 11 — were killed in the crash.
At Parramatta Local Court on Thursday, Davidson appeared via video for the first time since the horrific crash, to indicate he would plead guilty to several charges, including four counts of manslaughter, when the matter returns to court in October.
Court documents allege Davidson was found to have MDMA in his system and a blood alcohol reading of 0.15 — three-times the legal limit — following his arrest.
It is alleged he was driving at 45km/h over the speed limit and ran a red light at the Pennant Hills Rd and Bettington Rd intersection, having left a service station with a friend in the car to return to his nearby home on Greens Ave. His car mounted the kerb and careered into the children, also injuring three other young family members who survived the ordeal.
Davidson’s lawyer Michelle Duncan said the former truck driver would also plead guilty to aggravated dangerous driving occasioning grievous bodily harm under the influence of a drug and two counts of causing bodily harm by misconduct while in charge of a motor vehicle.
The court heard the balance of those charges would be withdrawn upon entering guilty pleas to the seven charges indicated.
The Abdallah and Sakr families were not in court but Danny Abdallah, the father of three of the killed children, told The Daily Telegraph he welcomed Davidson’s plans to plead guilty.
“It’s not going to get our kids back, (but) the court (process) will be a lot quicker, so it will help us move forward,” he said.
Mr Abdallah said his grief had not lessened seven months on from the incident.
“Nothing’s changed,” he said. “How can I say it? Not a minute goes by not thinking about your kids. It’s like it was yesterday, the pain remains and we’re just trying to find a new normal in our family.”
Dressed in prison greens, Davidson, who has been in jail since the crash, appeared calm during yesterday’s hearing.
The matter will return to Parramatta Local Court on October 22.
