Garbutt 2020 fatal crash: Coronial inquest into death of four teenagers in stolen car at Townsville begins
The final fatal seconds before a crash which tragically killed four Townsville teens in a stolen car travelling more than 40km/h over the speed limit has been revealed. READ THE LATEST.
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The final fatal seconds before a crash which tragically killed four Townsville teens in a stolen car speeding more than 40km/h over the speed limit has been revealed.
At the moment of impact between the stolen Kia and a traffic light on Duckworth St, the car carrying the five teenagers had been travelling at 111km/h in a 70km/h zone.
The final seconds leading up to the horrendous fatality was aired in evidence given by Senior Constable Hayley Garrod of the Townsville Forensic Crash Unit, as day one of the inquest into the childrens’ deaths came to a close.
She told the inquest that five seconds before the crash, the car had been roaring along Duckworth St at 128km/h.
The cause of the impact, she said, had been excessive speed, with the driver then failing to negotiate a roundabout and oversteering, which caused the car to rotate and become airborne.
“It has impacted the traffic light pole, causing the roof and passenger side to peel away from the vehicle, and all four passengers to be ejected,” Senior Constable Garrod said.
The passenger side of the vehicle sustained “extensive damage”.
“The roof was located behind the vehicle, so the vehicle and the entire passenger side were all torn backwards,” she said.
Paint scrapings from the car left on the impacted pole were found as high as 2.1m up.
The inquest also heard from Senior Constable Thomas McCulloch from the Townsville Rapid Action Patrol Unit.
Senior Constable McCulloch gave evidence that he had been driving marked police van TW700 on the day of the crash, and had – just like Senior Constable Sharp and Senior Constable Forest – seen the white Kia on Cambridge St.
He also gave evidence that he had not known the Kia was stolen at the time, but had been earlier told to look out for a white SUV which he said had matched the Kia’s description.
It was heard when he attended the crash, he conducted traffic control.
The inquest will continue on Wednesday.
‘Horrendous’: Officer recalls horror scenes from fatal crash
One of the first officers on scene of the crash that killed four teenagers in Townsville has told the court of the “horrendous” scenes he witnessed.
Senior Constable Clayton Sharp had been driving police car TW701 with a second female officer in the passenger seat.
They had also seen the white Kia driving along Cambridge St.
He told the court he followed the Kia at distance – without activating lights and sirens – from Cambridge St, and eventually to Duckworth St.
He said at one point, the Kia drove at their marked police car from the wrong side of the road.
Senior Constable Sharp said he later saw the Kia run a red light at an intersection at Fulham Rd, before driving on the wrong side of the road along Duckworth St, nearing the Bayswater Rd intersection.
He said he then lost sight of the Kia, which he estimated was between 800m to a kilometre ahead.
Shortly after, he came across the crash.
“ … it was horrendous, I observed an upside down white vehicle … there was lots of debris on the road …,” he said.
After approaching the wreck by foot, he saw the surviving teenage boy exit the vehicle, and thought he had been the only person in the car – until the second officer told him there were more children at the rear of the vehicle.
Senior Constable Sharp said he recalled there had been some cultural sensitivity training while in the academy – but that he only remembered one further online module that had covered cultural sensitivity while notifying next of kin on the deaths of family members.
Senior Constable Sharp was not the officer who notified the children’s families after the crash.
The inquest continues.
Police saw Kia take off ‘at speed’ before crash
Senior Constable David Forest was the second witness called to give evidence.
On the day of the crash, Senior Constable Forest was in the passenger seat of police vehicle TW442, conducting general patrols.
Another officer was behind the wheel.
Senior Constable Forest told the court he and the other officer had been told to be on the lookout for a white SUV, but that they had not known it was stolen at that time.
He told the court he later saw a car matching the description on Cambridge St, but that the patrol car was a “significant distance” from the Kia and they could not see the registration plates.
The Kia then did a U-turn before taking off “at speed” onto Palmerston St and away from the officers.
At no time did the unit activate their lights and sirens, nor attempt to intercept the Kia, he said.
The officers were later called to the scene of the crash and attended the scene.
Grandmother’s harrowing words after teen killed in horror crash
A heartbroken grandmother who lost her 13-year-old grandson in a quadruple fatal crash at Garbutt has made an emotional statement to the Coroner as the inquest into the deaths of four teens begins.
Sanaa Liddle, grandmother of Lucius ‘Barefoot’ Hure-Hill, 13 — one of four teenagers killed in the 2020 crash — gave a brief yet emotional statement to Coroner Terry Ryan as the court opened.
“This is for you, Barefoot, you are way more than the sum of the mistakes you have made,” Ms Liddle said.
Detective Sergeant Donna Green was the first witness to take the stand.
Det Sergeant Green was involved in the investigation by police after the crash.
The court was told three police units had been on the lookout for the stolen Kia Sorrento, which would later crash, but upon some units sighting it, had not activated their lights and sirens.
Det Sgt Green said the units that had followed did so at a rate of 20 to 32 seconds behind the Kia, and had made “no attempt to intercept the vehicle or pursue the vehicle”.
When police came across the scene, the court was told that the injuries to the children – four of which were ejected from the vehicle – were so severe that they could not be identified at the scene.
Det Sgt Green agreed there had been “no evidence” which said any of the officers involved had acted in misconduct or breached any policies, nor had their actions amounted to a criminal offence.
She said she was unaware of any particular training on cultural sensitivity in regards to the notification of next of kin and family of a deceased.
The inquest continues.
Details of horror crash that killed four kids to be revealed
It was the accident that should never have happened.
Four teenagers with their whole lives ahead of them, dead after a devastating stolen car crash in Garbutt.
Aaliyah Kiri Kowhi Te Paa, 17, Rayvenna Tyrone Coolwell, 15, Lucius ‘Barefoot’ Hure-Hill, 13, and Cayenne Muriel Robertson, 14, were all killed when the stolen Kia they were in crashed on Bayswater Rd and Duckworth St on June 7, 2020.
The 14-year-old driver was later charged and sentenced on counts of dangerous operation of a vehicle causing death and was ordered to serve 60 per cent of a five-year sentence in October 2021.
A coronial inquest headed by Coroner Terry Ryan in Townsville will begin today.
The inquest will put under a spotlight the adequacy and appropriateness of the actions of the Queensland Police Service, as well as the subsequent investigation into the circumstances surrounding the children’s deaths.
The inquest will also examine whether there are further actions that could prevent a similar incident from occurring again.
Detective Sergeant Donna Green, Constable David Forest, Constable Clayton Sharp, Acting Sergeant Thomas McCulloch and Senior Constable Hayley Garrod will give evidence today.
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