July 30, 2013
A tired driver who caused a head-on crash that killed two Toowoomba basketballers near Booubyjan last year was changing music tracks on his mobile phone when the incident occurred.
He also had traces of methylamphetamine in his system after taking the drug the weekend before the crash, the District Court in Kingaroy was told on Monday.
Jeremy Karl Crane, 29, from Dingo, pleaded guilty to two counts of dangerous operation of a vehicle causing death.
Stacey Lee Richter, 21, and Stephanie Olympia Mylonas, 20, from the Toowoomba Mountaineers basketball team, were travelling back from a game in Bundaberg when they were killed in the collision on the Burnett Highway about 4:35pm on August 19.
Crane was driving a Toyota Hilux 4WD pulling a trailer. He was heading north along the highway.
Basketballer Jodi Wright was driving a Toyota Prado and travelling south. The deceased passengers were seated in the front passenger seat and a rear passenger seat of the Prado. Two children, a 13-year-old girl and an 11-year-old boy, were also in the vehicle.
The Crown alleged that as Crane came to a bend he straightened up onto the wrong side of the road.
Ms Wright slowed down as she saw Crane’s vehicle approaching. She flashed her lights and sounded her horn but there was no response from the other vehicle.
She swerved to avoid the impact but the vehicles still collided.
The Prado was spun around and Crane’s Hilux overturned.
Ms Wright and the two children were taken by ambulance to Murgon Hospital for treatment to minor injuries; Crane was transported to Kingaroy Hospital, also with minor injuries. Ms Richter and Ms Mylonas died at the scene.
A later police search of Crane’s vehicle located a small plastic container inside a rolled up pair of socks. Inside was 0.575g of methylamphetamine in crystal rocks.
Crane told police he had swallowed speed on the previous Wednesday and Saturday; he had only two hours sleep on Saturday night.
Earlier in the journey he had pulled up at the Tansey turn-off to clean his windscreen. When pressed by police, he said he was “a bit tired”.
He said the crash occurred just as he had put music on. All he could remember was a “boom boom” and then rolling over.
The music was on his phone which was plugged into the vehicle’s stereo, and he was changing songs.
Another witness told police he had seen Crane’s vehicle travel onto the wrong side of the road before correcting itself a few kilometres south of where the crash occurred.
The Crown said a blood test found 0.05mg/kg amphetamine and 0.23mg/kg methylamphetamine in Crane’s blood; there was no trace of alcohol.
The courtroom was packed by friends and family of the deceased to hear the sentencing.
A victim impact statement prepared by Ms Wright was read to the court.
Judge Gary Long sentenced Crane to 3 1/2 years jail to be suspended after serving 10 months.
[UPDATED July 31, 2013 with corrections]
