Casey Mallia: Matthew Agius escapes jail over deadly crash
A young man who was behind the wheel of his Toyota Hilux when it crashed and killed his girlfriend of a few months in the Riverina region has learned his fate. READ THE JUDGE’S COMMENTS.
Penrith
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A young man who was behind the wheel of a crash that took the life of his girlfriend near Wagga Wagga has escaped a full-time jail sentence.
Matthew Luke Agius was sentenced to a one year and 10-month jail term in August on a charge of negligent driving occasioning death by Judge Ian Bourke.
According to police facts, Agius had worked a full day before having dinner with his girlfriend Casey Mallia, 19, and her family at an Italian restaurant in Penrith on December 21, 2018.
The pair, who had been dating for a few months at the time, then left for Mildura in Agius’s Toyota HiLux as they planned to meet his parents for a holiday.
At 6.11am the next morning, the HiLux attempted to overtake a car containing the Stewart family at about 120km/h on the Sturt Hwy near Narrandera.
Agius overcorrected when attempting to merge back into his lane and his tyres left the road, causing the car to move into the oncoming lane and into a ditch.
The car rolled at least once and travelled more than 100 metres before coming to a rest on its roof.
Steven Stewart called triple-0 before finding Casey hanging upside down by her seatbelt. Matthew was found underneath the vehicle.
Casey tragically died of her injuries the next day in a Canberra hospital. She was survived by her mother Kirsty Greenfield, her father and stepmother Patrick and Suzy Mallia, and her siblings Ashley, Timothy, Autumn, and Victoria.
After being sentenced on August 6, Agius returned to Penrith District Court on Thursday to learn his ultimate fate.
Judge Bourke said that he had received a sentencing assessment report that said Agius was suitable for home detention.
“I’ve received a report which indicates that, due to the severity of his brain injury and resultant disabilities, he may find difficulty in complete the necessary schedules for home detention,” he said.
“However, community corrections has met and discussed these concerns with his mother who has agreed to support him.”
Judge Bourke said that an ICO had the “capacity to act as substantial punishment” but also acknowledged that it could “reflect leniency given it does not involve immediate
incarceration”.
“Community safety isn’t always addressed by incarceration, sometimes it has the opposite effect,” he said.
“Of particular importance in this case is the need to make sure he’s adequately punished and to recognise the harm done to the victim and her family.
“I’ve already made findings that he’s a low risk of reoffending, and I’ve found he would have great difficulty in adapting to prison environment.
“I’ve formed the opinion that an ICO is more likely to address his risk of reoffending.”
Casey’s family expressed disappointment with the sentence, with one member describing it as a “joke” as they walked out of the courtroom.
Agius will be under home detention for one year and six months.