When Joshua Neale's regular car broke down, he decided to drive his partially restored Toyota Landcruiser to work in the pre-dawn of a March morning last year.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
It was a decision that would kill his friend, 26-year-old Rochester man Matthew O'Donoghue, and see him jailed for at least a year.
Neale, 21, was sentenced in the County Court yesterday to three years' imprisonment with a non-parole period of one year after pleading guilty to culpable driving by gross negligence.
About 6.40am on March 6, 2018, Mr O'Donoghue was travelling to work along the Heathcote-Rochester Road at Bonn when he attempted to legally overtake a slower vehicle at the end of a sweeping bend and crossed onto the other side of the road.
It was dark, with light just showing on the horizon.
Driving in opposite direction was Neale in his black Landcruiser, which was not fitted with headlights.
The two vehicles collided head-on.
Mr O'Donoghue was pronounced dead at the scene, while Neale was taken to The Alfred hospital in Melbourne with significant injuries that included a traumatic brain injury, a fractured femur, complex facial lacerations, a nasal fracture and a collapsed lung, some of which required surgery.
At the time of the crash, Neale's vehicle was unregistered but he held a permit that allowed him to drive in daylight.
Neither drugs nor alcohol were a factor in the crash, and the speed of both vehicles was estimated to have been within the limit.
The driver of the vehicle Mr O'Donoghue was overtaking said he only saw Neale's Landcruiser when it was about 10 metres away.
"Your principal error of judgement... is that you have failed to foresee that a vehicle approaching your vehicle, not in a straight line - for example on a sweeping bend - may not have adequate warning of the approach of your vehicle, if the driver was attempting to legally overtake another vehicle," Judge David Brookes said.
The consequences of this offence, Judge Brookes said, were "nothing short of devastating". In a victim impact statement, Mr O'Donoghue's mother Andrea O'Donoghue spoke of how difficult it was to say her last goodbye to her son in the funeral home.
"It was horrific. I didn't want to leave him - I was his mum," she said.
"You are not supposed to leave your kids helpless, and that's how I felt."
Mr O'Donoghue's sisters and stepfather described the enormous loss the death of the "all-round top bloke" had resulted in.
"To be honest, to this day I still believe he's going to pull up in the driveway, because I don't think I will ever be able to accept that Matthew has been taken away from us," his younger sister Stephanie Crouch said.
"He's supposed to be here with us as a family.
"He was supposed to fall in love and get married, have kids, and die an old man.
"But he will never get to do those things, because he is dead."
Information and numerous character references provided to the court described Neale as a hard-working, responsible and selfless young man.
"The conclusion that has been urged upon me, and which I do make, is that you are a young man of considerable potential with strong work ethic," Judge Brookes said.
Forensic psychologist Ian Joblin reported Neale showed signs of remorse through sadness and distress, as well as a "torturing sense of guilt" for his actions.
In sentencing Neale, Judge Brookes said rehabilitation was at the forefront of sentencing considerations.
He noted Neale offered to plead guilty to dangerous driving causing death at an early stage.
Had the matter gone to trial, Judge Brookes said a jury could have acquitted Neale on the culpable driving charge and instead found him guilty of the lesser dangerous driving offence.
Judge Brookes also accepted that Neale's remorse and a letter of apology he wrote to Mr O'Donoghue's family were genuine.
He said Neale's moral culpability lay towards the lower end of the spectrum.
Neale's depression would make imprisonment more onerous for him, Judge Brooks found, and custody could significantly worsen his mental health.
Judge Brookes deemed that the interests of justice were served by not imposing a non-parole period of at least 60 per cent of the total sentence, as is usually required in culpable driving matters.
Neale's licence was also cancelled and he was disqualified from driving for two years.
This article has been amended to reflect the correct sentence.
Have you signed up to the Bendigo Advertiser's daily newsletter and breaking news emails? You can register below and make sure you are up to date with everything that's happening in central Victoria.
Natalie Croxon
Reporter at the Illawarra Mercury, mostly covering social affairs. Previously of the Bendigo Advertiser, Northern Daily Leader and Quirindi Advocate. Our Watch award winner.
Reporter at the Illawarra Mercury, mostly covering social affairs. Previously of the Bendigo Advertiser, Northern Daily Leader and Quirindi Advocate. Our Watch award winner.
