Double death car ‘going too fast’

Press, 12 November 1985, Page 4

Double death car ‘going too fast’

A car which struck an elderly couple crossing Ferry Road was travelling too fast, the District Court was told yesterday. The evidence was given at the preliminary hearing of six driving charges against Nigel Marc Bartlett, aged 22, a police constable. He is alleged to have caused the deaths of the couple, James Alfred Lanyon, aged 72, and Reta Jessica Lanyon, aged 70, as they were walking across Ferry Road to their car after attending an evening service at St Anne’s Catholic Church, on May 25. Eleven of the 16 prosecution witnesses had given evidence when Judge Sheehan adjourned the hearing to today for completion. The defendant is charged with causing the deaths of Mr and Mrs Lanyon by driving at a speed which, having regard to all the circumstances, was dangerous; causing the deaths of Mr and Mrs Lanyon by an act or omission when in charge of a car while the proportion of alcohol in his blood exceeded 80 milligrams; and causing the couple’s deaths by carelessly driving a car while under the influence of alcohol, but not so as to commit an offence against the excess alcohol provisions of the Transport Act. Mr D. J. L. Saunders appears for the police and Mr J. N. Hampton for the defendant. Mr Saunders, in his opening outline of the case, said Bartlett was alleged to have been travelling about 80km/h in a 50km/h area, before the collision. A blood sample taken from him showed a ratio of 133 milligrams of alcohol per litre of blood. Constable W. G. Thomas said he was called to the accident scene at 7.49 p.m. It was dark and street lighting in the area of the accident was “moderate only.” Skid marks continued for some distance on the road, then stopped, and then continued to where a car, which appeared to have been in an accident, had stopped. Cross-examined, the constable said the distance from the pedestrian crossing to where the car had stopped was 14.4 m. There were no flashing beacons or floodlighting on the crossing. The only lighting was the moderate lighting of the street lamps on the pole cross-arms. The witness agreed that the street lighting was not continuous, but was rather “in pools.” He said he was aware there had been more lighting installed at the pedestrian crossing “more or less immediately after the accident.”

The night was frosty but clear and there was about a quarter moon shining. Hillmar Wolfram Siemelink, a fitter-engineer, said that after attending a special service at St Anne’s Church, Ferry Road, he and his wife went to their car at 7.15 p.m. He was opening the driver’s door when he heard an engine approaching “at very high revs.” He partly closed the door and leaned into his car, and “felt” a car go past at very high speed. He then heard a bang as though the car had hit a concrete wall. He could not see what had been hit but thought it must be people. The witness said he believed he heard the car braking, after the bang. He went over to both victims, to try to give firstaid assistance, but they appeared to be dead. He then looked for the driver in case he was hurt, and a person pointed out the driver to him.

He approached this man, who said he was the driver, and he could smell alcohol on the man’s breath. He told the man he was drunk. The witness said he could not remember this person. He never took in his face at the time. The man’s age was about 27. Cross-examined, Mr Siemelink agreed he was pretty worked up by what had happened. There had been about 200 worshippers at the special service, and many cars parked along both sides of the street in the vicinity of the church. The witness agreed that pushing the driver’s door closed and standing closely against the car was a precaution he normally took when he heard a car approaching. After the crash he got into his car and had to sit down because he “got a shock” himself. Barry John Irvine, a wood turner, said he was at a bus opposite the church when he saw a car approaching at between 40 and 50 miles an hour. The car did not slow, and hit a couple, who were thrown up in the air. He had not seen the couple crossing the road, before the impact. The car was travelling on its correct side of the road. Vera Strettell, an administration clerk, said she left the church service and went to cross Ferry Road, between two parked cars. She saw a car’s lights a long way off, to the right. When she next looked in that direction she saw the car was very close, travelling exceptionally quickly. She looked to her left and saw a couple crossing the road from the church side.

t They were 30ft from her. s The witness then looked right again and saw the car - go past exceptionally 1 quickly. > Mrs Strettell said she s stepped back, instinctively 1 realising she could not have t crossed the road because ? the car was travelling too i quickly. “I realised then - that it had to hit the other people.” r She thought the couple 1 showed in the cars headr lights, and she then saw the i figures rising above the bonI net. She did not recall hears ing any braking before that. i The car swerved a little s to the right. She did not think the pedestrians saw ■ the car. Cross-examined, Mrs Strettell said there was a i continuous line of parked vehicles along the road outr side the church. ! She said the couple were i not on the pedestrian crossi ing when they crossed the s road. Other evidence was that the couple were taken to hospital by ambulance but were found to be dead on arrival. A post mortem examination showed that both had died of multiple injuries. An examination of the vehicle showed no apparent mechanical defects likely to have contributed to the accident.