Ex-ice junkie Kyle John Sheldon, 34, who killed three people at the wheel wants driver’s licence back

A Gold Coast ex-ice addict disqualified from driving for life after killing three people in separate crashes is pleading for his licence back.

A Gold Coast ex-ice addict and criminal who was disqualified from driving for life after killing three people on the road in two years is pleading with a court to give him his licence back.

Kyle John Sheldon, 34, insists he’s a changed man and desperately needs his licence for work and to help drive his stepchildren around.

He says he is sick of riding his bike and skateboard to work, catching public transport or having family and friends drive him everywhere, and life without a licence is “not sustainable”.

Sheldon says he “has so much to live for now” and just wants to “live a law-abiding, stable and happy life”.

His mum is backing him, saying he has broken down “many times” with remorse about the deaths he had caused and told her he wished he had died instead.

Sheldon was sentenced to 14 years’ jail over separate crashes in 2009 and 2011 which left three people dead.

In the first crash, he veered on to the wrong side of the road while drunk and killed a motorcyclist.

Two of his best mates died in the 2011 crash when he slammed a Volkswagen Golf into a parked B-double truck after the three of them had robbed an IGA supermarket. Sheldon fled the scene.

Sheldon was paroled in November 2017 but was banned from the road for life. He now wants the District Court to have the absolute disqualification overturned.

In his application, Sheldon admits he was a “serious” ice addict who committed crimes to fund his habit and spent most of his 20s in jail. He said despite coming from a good home, he turned to drugs and alcohol when he was 15 and his life “slid downhill quickly”.

But he says he has now turned his life around, got married, bought a home and started a “burgeoning” pest control business.

The scene of the fatal crash between a stolen car and truck. Picture: Channel 10

He said after getting out of jail, he got a job with a Brisbane-based formwork company, riding his bike or skateboard to the train station or relying on taxis, family and friends for lifts.

Sheldon said this was “not sustainable” as he often had to take tools with him and, while he was now working on the Gold Coast, the job was due to finish in April.

He said he had completed courses, including one in pest control and had now started his own business. But not having a licence was taking a “huge toll” on his wife who had to juggle driving him to work and ferrying her two daughters around.

“The reality of the situation is that I require my licence so I can attend pest-control jobs and meet with future and potential clients,” he said. “I will not be able to build this business and provide for my family in the event I am unable to drive.

“Although I have managed without a licence so far, having a car will be the last step in my transition that would allow me to become fully independent and progress my career further.”

Sheldon admitted he had been busted for cocaine and steroids since being released from jail but had put in place a relapse plan “so this never happens again”.

Passenger Jeremy Booth was killed when Kyle John Sheldon crashed into the back of a truck in June 2011.

Crash victim Peter McGregor. Supplied photo

He had also seen a psychologist for help with strategies “to stop myself from falling back into bad habits” and was going to gym with his wife and brother to “keep me away from bad activities, bad habits and bad people”.

Sheldon said he wanted to give back and had volunteered as a mentor for the Anti-Ice Campaign and as a speaker for the Queensland Traffic Offenders Program.

“The fact that my actions on the roads led to the loss of three lives is not lost on me; I think about what I have done every day,” he said.

“Now that I have a family of my own, the tragedy of losing a loved one is even more apparent to me. I know that I cannot undo the harm that I have caused, but I am committed to never placing myself in a similar position again.

“More than anything, I want to be able to provide for my family, contribute to society through my work and live a law-abiding, stable and happy life. I have so much to live for now and I would not jeopardise any of it by acting the way that I have done in the past.”

Family including Sheldon’s mother Michelle and twin brother Jakeb have filed affidavits of support.

The case is set for a hearing in October.

Originally published as Ex-ice junkie Kyle John Sheldon, 34, who killed three people at the wheel wants driver’s licence back