Mitchell Barry Sullivan: Fifth-time drink driver’s victim speaks out about crime that changed her life
A woman struck by a recidivist drink driver at Mermaid Waters last year says she has been left with a legacy of trauma and expressed her dismay the driver avoided a custodial sentence.
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A woman struck by a recidivist drink driver at Mermaid Waters last year says she has been left with a legacy of trauma and expressed her dismay the driver avoided a custodial sentence.
Last month, Mermaid Waters man Mitchell Barry Sullivan, 36, was sentenced to 18 months’ imprisonment with immediate court-ordered parole, as well as being disqualified for three years and having to pay his victim $5000 compensation.
He pleaded guilty to four offences including dangerous operation of a vehicle and high-range drink-driving.
Shockingly, it was the fifth time he had been busted behind the wheel with a tank full of grog.
The court heard Sullivan was more than four times the legal blood-alcohol limit when he mounted a footpath near the intersection of Oceanic Dr and Sunshine Blvd, Mermaid Waters, striking a pedestrian before veering across four lanes of traffic to hit an oncoming vehicle.
Now, the female pedestrian, whose life has been altered by Sullivan’s disregard of societal norms, is speaking out.
The woman, who asked to remain anonymous, said she had only been in Australia four months when she was left with injuries including a fractured hip while walking home from work just metres from her home.
“This experience has been one of the most difficult of my life,” she told this masthead.
“As a recent immigrant, I didn’t have the resources to hire a lawyer, and had to navigate everything – legal and medical – while still dealing with serious physical and mental health impacts, as well as a language barrier.
“I don’t remember anything about the accident itself, they day it happened, or even the days leading up to it.
“My first memory is from the hospital the following morning. I spent the whole night asking my partner what happened.
“It was deeply disorienting and frightening.”
The woman said her life had been transformed in the months since the accident.
“My life before this was completely normal. I was happy, energetic, very social, and living a stable life,” she said.
“Since then, I’ve had to face things I never imagined, especially being in a foreign country, far from my support network.
“I’ve seen several specialists for the different injuries I sustained... spending the last nine months in ongoing treatment, including physiotherapy and psychology every week, and I haven’t been able to return to work.
“The most lasting impact has been on my mental health – I’ve been diagnosed with PTSD.”
She said the sentence handed to Sullivan – Magistrate Jane Bentley said he would have been ordered to serve actual time were it not for his offer to pay $5000 compensation – left her feeling cold and bewildered.
“It’s hard to understand how $5000 in compensation, regardless of who receives it, could help someone to avoid prison,” she said.
“When the police called me with the sentencing outcome, they said they had ‘good news’. “That’s something I simply couldn’t agree with.”
The woman “sincerely hoped” Queensland Police would consider appealing the sentence.
“Right now, he’s out there, and that worries me,” she said.
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Originally published as Mitchell Barry Sullivan: Fifth-time drink driver’s victim speaks out about crime that changed her life
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