Jacqueline Vodden fatal: findings from 2017 death read to Coroner’s Court

A coroner has told the family of a teen girl killed during a police chase near Ballarat that “the human cost is immense”. Read the findings.

Jacqueline Vodden, 16, who was killed in Ballan crash in 2017. Image: Facebook.

A coroner has listed three recommendations for Victoria Police members after an inquest into the death of a teenage girl who was flung from a stolen van during a police chase.

Jacqueline Vodden, 16, was killed when she was flung from the passenger seat of a stolen van after the 17-year-old driver ploughed into two trucks on the Western Freeway at Ballan, near Ballarat, in September 2017.

The Herald Sun earlier reported a police officer maintained chasing the stolen vehicle was the right call given the “high-volume” crimes the vehicle was involved in.

The van’s model and licence plate revealed it to be a stolen vehicle involved in aggravated burglaries across the area, including one earlier that day.

Coroner Sarah Gebert told the court on March 14 that police who engaged in the pursuit of the Toyota HiAce van were not properly equipped to assess the speeds of the fleeing van.

“The observer said he couldn’t see the speedometer. The broadcasting of speed is however, one of the primary tasks for an observer to take.”

“The police have indicated that if they thought the van was travelling at a speed of 100km/h in Inglis St at the start of the pursuit, it would have been terminated,” Coroner Gebert said.

The court heard two eye witnesses said the van was travelling at 100km/h in the local streets of Ballan in a 60km/h zone.

In her findings, Coroner Gebert made three recommendations to Victoria Police.

The court heard the first recommendation was for “all police vehicles to be fit with appropriate equipment to gauge the speed of other vehicles,” directly relating to the issue of the observer not being able to see the speedometer.

The second recommendation heard by the court was for Victoria Police to look into ways to improve radio communications during pursuits.

“I’m concerned with systems issues, not individual police members,” she said.

“There is no doubt the task on police when engaged in pursuit is overwhelming, this is a recognised issue.”

The third and final recommendation made by Coroner Gebert was that police should receive training to give greater weight to passengers in the vehicle, the age of the driver and the likelihood of the success of a pursuit.

“Likely, the most unpredictable element of a pursuit is the behaviour of the person being pursued,” she told the court.

“This largely cannot be controlled or predicted. Often the most unpredictable are young males who are substance affected, as is this case.”

The inquest had been told the driver was part of “a group of local Ballarat youths who are recidivist offenders” and he had stolen another car to flee the scene of the fatal crash before being arrested hiding in a shed in Wendouree.

He was sentenced to eight years in youth detention. The teenager cannot be identified because he was a child at the time of the offending.

Finally, the court heard Coroner Gebert thanked Ms Vodden’s family.

“For the family of Jacqueline who are in court and listening today, thank you, it has been my honour to conduct this investigation.”

“The human cost is immense.”

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