A man
with a Nigerian licence was driving on the wrong side of
with a Nigerian licence was driving on the wrong side of
the
road well before a head-on crash in which a woman was seriously injured, an
Adelaide judge has found.The prosecution had suggested
that Udo Ikika Uduma suddenly drove on the incorrect side of the road, thinking
he was in Nigeria where motorists drive on the right side.
road well before a head-on crash in which a woman was seriously injured, an
Adelaide judge has found.The prosecution had suggested
that Udo Ikika Uduma suddenly drove on the incorrect side of the road, thinking
he was in Nigeria where motorists drive on the right side.
After a judge-alone trial in
the South Australian District Court, Judge Wayne Chivell found the 25-year-old
aged care worker guilty of dangerous driving causing serious bodily harm to
Bettina Coscia.
Mrs Coscia suffered numerous
injuries including leg fractures in the collision, which occurred just before
midnight on December 3, 2010, in the Adelaide Hills.
injuries including leg fractures in the collision, which occurred just before
midnight on December 3, 2010, in the Adelaide Hills.
“She has ongoing pain,
physical disability, psychological difficulty, and permanent scarring,”
Judge Chivell said in his judgment on Monday.
physical disability, psychological difficulty, and permanent scarring,”
Judge Chivell said in his judgment on Monday.
He rejected a defence
suggestion that Uduma suddenly drove onto the wrong side after being blinded by
Mrs Coscia’s headlights.
suggestion that Uduma suddenly drove onto the wrong side after being blinded by
Mrs Coscia’s headlights.
“I am satisfied beyond
reasonable doubt that, for some reason which is not apparent, Mr Uduma was
driving south on the incorrect side of the road, well prior to the impact, and
did not do so as a result of being distracted by Mrs Coscia’s headlights,”
he said.
reasonable doubt that, for some reason which is not apparent, Mr Uduma was
driving south on the incorrect side of the road, well prior to the impact, and
did not do so as a result of being distracted by Mrs Coscia’s headlights,”
he said.
The prosecution had submitted
that the suggestion Uduma thought he was in Nigeria did not make sense because
he had been in Australia for a substantial time and had driven extensively,
including on country roads and at night.
that the suggestion Uduma thought he was in Nigeria did not make sense because
he had been in Australia for a substantial time and had driven extensively,
including on country roads and at night.
