MELBOURNE - Excessive alcohol use is not a quaint Australian cultural trait but a devastating epidemic, says a judge who jailed a Victorian drink-driver involved in a fatal crash.
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Timothy Watson, 24, of Cairnlea, was sentenced to 10 years and three months' jail after pleading guilty in the County Court to culpable driving causing the death of 16-year-old Ebony Dunsworth last year.
He also admitted causing serious injury to another two passengers and stealing the car he crashed at Nar Nar Goon, in the Gippsland region, in the early hours of October 31.
Watson had a blood-alcohol concentration of 0.139 and was driving at speeds up to 180km/h when the car ploughed through a roundabout, hitting a street sign and a concrete tunnel before rolling several times.
He was unlicensed with prior convictions for driving and alcohol-related offences.
In jailing Watson for a minimum seven years yesterday, Judge Frank Gucciardo said firm sentences were urgently required to remind motorists of the dangers of irresponsible driving, especially when combined with alcohol abuse.
He said the community needed to accept it had a problem with alcohol.
``Its inappropriate use is not harmless or a quaint cultural trait - it is an epidemic which devastates lives,'' Judge Gucciardo said.
``This is too often coupled with a misuse of cars which become lethal weapons of destructive power.
``The excessive use of alcohol as a pastime, combined with reckless driving as a form of entertainment, is a culture that must change.''
Watson drove erratically and dangerously, using speed and aggression to vent his anger and frustration following an argument with a passenger over a girl, Judge Gucciardo said.
He ignored repeated pleas from Ebony and other passengers to slow down. Ebony's body was found underneath the car. She hadn't
When one tried to warn him of the upcoming roundabout, Watson replied: ``Shut the f--- up, you f---ing dog. I don't want to hear a f---ing word out of your f---ing mouth.''
Judge Gucciardo told him: ``Ebony Dunsworth didn't die in an accident, but as the direct consequence of your disregard of the law and her personal safety.''
In the moments before her death, Ebony sent her best friend Amelia Campbell a text message: ``Lol I'm gonna die''.
been wearing a seatbelt.
Outside court, Ms Campbell said Ebony was a popular girl, loved by everyone, whose death would hopefully send a message to young drivers.
