Randy, the driver of the accident. (AP Photo)
In November, an Asian woman driver drove a BMW in a car accident in (Coburg), north of Melbourne, killing a 13-year-old cyclist into a serious injury. Yesterday, she claimed in court that she had not realized that the girl had been injured at the time of the incident.
On Tuesday, the 41-year-old Asian-American driver, Nguyen (Thi Nguyen, appeared in court with an interpreter. She admitted that she had not stopped at the time of the accident and provided assistance. The car accident at one point seriously injured the girl and put her life at risk.
Defense lawyer Remberg (Alex Lewenberg) told Melbourne District Court (Melbourne Magistrates Court) on Tuesday that his client should have realized something was wrong before he pulled up in a nearby alley, but didn't know the girl was injured.
Nguyen was also frightened, he said. Because she can't speak English, she doesn't know how to provide assistance.
"she's a person who can't help, she can't speak, she can't explain. There were other people who could help. " "she was in a panic," said Lemberg, a lawyer.
According to court documents, Nguyen told police that she returned to the scene of the accident after the accident and saw other children standing next to the girl's bike. She then returned to her BMW and called a friend. The friend gave her the phone number of a lawyer before she drove home.
At the scene of the accident. (photo of the Times)
Gedon (Danielle Guesdon), the prosecutor, said Nguyen should have known the girl was injured and that "witnesses saw the victim being hit flying, and must have crashed into the windshield."
A scene photo provided by Gedon shows Nguyen's broken windshield showing the hair of a 13-year-old woman victim.
At the same time, she refuted the claim that the driver had returned to the scene of the accident. Surveillance footage shows the buggy left only about a minute after it stopped at the scene of the accident. "the prosecution refused to accept her return to the scene because she had no time at all."
Randy, the driver of the accident. (AP Photo)
Prosecutors believe that Nguyen's crime is serious and should be decided by the Intermediate Court. Nguyen's lawyer, however, demanded that she simply enforce a community disciplinary order, (community correction order).
It is reported that the girl was riding with friends when the accident, and did not wear helmets. Witnesses said that after the accident, other children had shouted "come back, come back" to the car.