NSW Police officer unlikely to be jailed over Gai Vieira crash

A police officer who left Sydney horseracing figure Bert Vieira’s wife with “life-changing” injuries is unlikely to be jailed, a judge has declared.

A police officer who left Sydney horseracing figure Bert Vieira’s wife with “life-changing” injuries is unlikely to be jailed and will receive a good behaviour bond instead, a judge has told a court.

NSW Police Senior Constable Harry Little, 43, of Engadine, faced Downing Centre District Court on Friday after pleading guilty to negligent driving occasioning grievous bodily harm over the 2018 incident.

Little’s first trial heard he was travelling at 135km/h in a 70 zone just before slamming into Ms Vieira’s car as she drove into a Cronulla intersection.

Harry Little outside court on Friday. Picture: NCA NewsWire

Gai Vieira before the collision, in 2014

At the time Little was pursuing another driver for using a mobile phone and did not have his patrol car’s lights and sirens activated, the court was told.

A jury was discharged when it was unable to reach a verdict on whether Little was guilty of dangerous driving occasioning grievous bodily harm, before a second jury found him not guilty of that charge last year.

Judge Sarah Huggett told the court on Friday it was unlikely she would send Little to jail for the lesser charge of negligent driving because section five of the Crimes (Sentencing Procedure) Act had not been met.

Under section five, a court must be satisfied no penalty other than jail is appropriate for an offender to be sent to “full time” imprisonment.

Bert Vieira with jockey Tim Clark at Royal Randwick Racecourse in 2018. Picture: AAP

“I’m sure we’re all on the same page that the section five threshold is not met, that there’s no imprisonment, that there’s no intensive correction order, surely that’s agreed and that it be a bond of some sort,” Judge Huggett said.

“The issue would be (whether to impose a) conviction or not. They seem to be to me, cutting to the chase, the issues between the parties.”

The court heard Ms Vieira had suffered “life changing” injuries, including a traumatic brain jury.

Judge Huggett said an agreed fact sheet stated Ms Vieira had “permanent and severe disability”, but that she did not have any more details.

“Beyond that I don’t know what day-to-day life is like, there’s no victim impact statement, there’s no further medicals, so I’m to be limited to that,” Judge Huggett said.

Prosecutors said there was no victim impact statement because the Vieira family did not wish to participate in the court proceedings any more.

Outside court, Bert Vieira had told The Daily Telegraph last December that he was “disillusioned” with the second jury’s verdict and that his wife required around-the-clock care.

In pushing for a conviction to be imposed on Little, prosecutors argued nobody should be above the law, and that a message should be sent not just to the general public but other highway patrol officers as to what is “reasonable care” on the roads.

Judge Huggett will sentence Little on March 17.

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