Jasper Milon was handed down a corrections order for killing 75-year-old Chelsea woman
A 22-year-old Berwick man who “misjudged” a turn before claiming the life of a 75-year-old Chelsea grandmother, has learnt his fate in court.
South East
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A Berwick man, who “misjudged” the distance between his car and one being driven by a 75-year-old grandmother leading to a fatal collision, won’t spend any time behind bars.
Jasper Milon, 22, was sentenced in the County Court on Thursday to one charge of driving in a manner that caused death.
He received a two-year community corrections order and must complete 150 hours of unpaid community work.
The court heard Milon was 20 at the time of the crash and was driving home from Bonbeach with a friend when he hit Heather Tucker’s car about 6.55pm on November 10, 2020.
Milon, who was on his Ps, slowed down at the intersection of Station St and McLeod Rd to turn right and “misjudged” the distance between Mrs Tucker’s car before proceeding to turn.
He was travelling about 19km/h.
Mrs Tucker was rushed to hospital with serious and critical injuries but sadly died two days later when she had a cardiac arrest.
Her death occurred just 12 months after her son died which left her family and husband of 52 years, Shane Tucker, devastated.
In a victim impact statement, Mr Tucker said up until Mrs Tucker’s death he and his wife rarely spent any time apart and now found it “hard to live life alone without her”.
The court heard the victim, who used to be an army nurse, had pre-existing health conditions which, Judge Gabriele Cannon said, likely played a role in her death.
“If not for Mrs Tucker’s previous health issues, (the incident) likely would have resulted in a relatively minor traffic incident,” she said.
The judge also said the crash, which was captured on CCTV, involved a “rather gentle impact” and didn’t activate the victim’s airbags, and was considered to be on the low-end of offending.
Character references supplied by Milon’s family, friends and employer described him as a diligent, polite, conscientious and kind-hearted man.
He continued to be employed and was supported by his parents at the proceedings.
Milon still struggles with the outcome of the horror crash and has demonstrated “genuine remorse” for his actions.
Ms Cannon was satisfied that rare and exceptional circumstances had been determined in the case, and gave less weight to general deterrence and risk to the community in sentencing Milon.
His licence was disqualified for a period of 18 months and no conviction was imposed.
