RELATED: Coroner probes patient’s death
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A court has heard Lynette Roberts was seen walking “like a zombie” along the side of the road in the hours before she was struck by a car and killed in December 2010.
The 49-year-old had left the Vahland House psychiatric facility at 11.30am on December 16, before making her way to Dunolly where the fatal crash occurred shortly after 9pm.
Coroner Jennifer Tregent heard that earlier that afternoon, William Roy was driving his granddaughter to work in Maldon when he saw Ms Roberts walking along the side of the the Maldon-Baringup Road.
Mr Roy testified Ms Roberts appeared as though she would “walk right over you” and his granddaughter observed she was “walking like a zombie”.
As he was returning from his granddaughter’s workplace about 20 minutes later, Mr Roy said he stopped and offered Ms Roberts a lift and she told him she was headed for Dunolly, saying she had “been in the rat house”.
Mr Roy said Ms Roberts appeared “extremely clean” but was overdressed for the Summer heat.
Raymond Mills, also known as Tony, was driving the vehicle which struck Ms Roberts later that evening and told the coronial inquiry he had no opportunity to avoid the collision.
Mr Mills said he was driving on Broadway, Dunolly, south of Clarke Street when he noticed another vehicle approaching from the other direction.
He said he was travelling about 60km/h and visibility was poor.
As the two vehicles passed each other, Mr Mills said he heard and felt a loud bang, and assumed something may have been thrown from the other vehicle.
"I'm just driving along and then ‘bang’,” he said.
Mr Mills testified it was after he stopped, did a U-turn and walked back towards the scene of the crash that he first became aware of the presence of a person on the road.
The court heard he helped the driver of the other car, a paramedic, perform CPR on Ms Roberts before speaking with police at the scene.
One of the officers on duty that night was sergeant Steven Cunningham, who testified he had known Mr Mills for more than 20 years and that he did not believe he was exceeding the 60km/h speed limit.
"I concluded that in no way Tony Mills was at fault in this collision,” he said.
The inquiry is expected to concluded on Friday.