Driver ran over parking ranger after getting ticket

A young driver crashed into a parking ranger and left him fighting for his life in a coma after being issued a parking fine.

A young driver will remain behind bars on remand as he waits to learn his fate for running over a parking ranger just minutes after being issued a ticket for parking illegally.

Matthew Valerio appeared in the NSW District Court on Monday after pleading guilty to recklessly causing grievous bodily harm and failing to stop and assist after vehicle impact causing grievous bodily harm.

According to the agreed facts, the 22-year-old had parked in a ‘no stopping’ zone on Marion St in Enmore, in Sydney’s inner west, just after 8pm on November 26 last year.

He returned to his car after around 40 minutes and found he had been issued a parking ticket by a local council parking ranger, who told him he was too late to contest the fine.

Matthew Valerio ran over a parking ranger in a white Mazda ute after he was given a parking ticket. Picture: Facebook

“F***ing ranger,” Valerio or his friend swore, according to the court documents.

The young men then climbed into Valerio’s white Mazda ute and did a three-point turn while the ranger and his colleague continued down the road in their high visibility vests.

Valerio drove back down the narrow street towards them and smashed into one of the rangers and a parked car.

The court documents reveal the victim landed underneath another car and had to be rushed to hospital, where he remained in a coma for two weeks.

The 61-year-old ranger required multiple surgeries after sustaining traumatic brain and spinal injuries, a lacerate liver, and several fractured bones.

The crown prosecutor told the court Valerio had paused briefly before driving off and leaving the victim “in circumstances where he knew, or ought to have known, the injuries were very serious”.

She said the 22-year-old exhibited a “very high degree of recklessness” when he committed the “very serious offending” nearly a year ago.

The crown prosecutor opined it was “realistically inevitable” that Valerio would be sentenced to full time imprisonment, and he should remain behind bars on remand until he is sentenced.

However, Valerio’s lawyer Evan James argued there was “no certainty” of that outcome.

He noted the 22-year-old had no prior criminal history, a limited driving record, and strong family ties.

Mr James urged the court to release Valerio on bail to allow him to continue to engage with mental health treatment and attend medical appointments.

The man was struck while walking down Marion St in Enmore and left with serious injuries. Picture: Google Maps

Acting Judge Graeme Henson refused to grant bail and noted he would expect the disgraced driver to receive a sentence of at least four years.

“This is an egregious course of conduct to say the least,” he said.

When sentencing Valerio, the court heard the judge will take into account related charges of destruction of property and failing to give his details to the victim.

The 22-year-old wore a prison green tracksuit and a blank expression as the decision was handed down, but his supporters in court gasped in distress and clutched each other.

He will return to court on Friday to set a date for sentencing.