Methed up Mildura Dad William Dea blames son’s ‘tantrum’ for car crash

A drugged-up Mildura father blamed his five-year-old child for a crash that saw his vehicle veer onto the wrong side of the road, smash into a parked car and flip onto its roof.

A Mildura father blamed a car accident that caused his car to flip onto its roof on his child throwing a tantrum. Picture: NCA NewsWire /Brendan Beckett

A Mildura father high on meth has blamed his young son’s tantrum for an accident that flipped a car, a court has heard.

William Dea pleaded guilty to multiple charges after crashing his car into another parked vehicle while driving high on ice with a disqualified licence on a busy Mildura street in April.

The court heard Dea, with his school aged son in the car, had veered into oncoming traffic on San Mateo Ave before smashing into the parked car with such force that it caused his vehicle to roll onto its roof.

Ambulance Victoria assessed Dea at the scene before taking him to hospital where a blood test revealed he had methamphetamine in his system.

It was revealed Dea’s licence was cancelled in 2020, and he was only a P2 probationary licence holder.

When questioned by police, Dea claimed he had been driving to take his newborn to daycare when his five-year-old began kicking the back of his seat, causing him to take his eyes off the road and crash.

Dea’s lawyer, Hugh Middleton, told the court his client had done a stint in rehab in Bendigo and was now a recovering addict.

“He appears to have addressed his underlying drug issue,” Mr Middleton said.

Magistrate Patrick Southey told Dea his guilty plea was valuable and prevented him from going to jail.

“This is an outrageously serious matter. Had you not pleaded guilty you would be going to jail,” Mr Southey said.

Dea was disqualified from driving for 12 months and fined $1200.