South Australian Current Acts South Australian Current Acts19ABA—Causing death or serious harm by careless use of vehicle or vessel
(a)
drives a vehicle or operates a vessel without due care or attention or without
reasonable consideration for any person; and
(b) by
that conduct, causes the death of another,
is guilty of an indictable offence.
Maximum penalty:
(a)
where a motor vehicle or motor vessel was used in the commission of the
offence—
(i)
for a basic offence—imprisonment for 5 years
and, in the case of an offence involving the use of a motor vehicle,
disqualification from holding or obtaining a driver's licence for 1 year
or such longer period as the court orders;
(ii)
for an aggravated offence—imprisonment for
7 years and, in the case of an offence involving the use of a
motor vehicle, disqualification from holding or obtaining a driver's licence
for 3 years or such longer period as the court orders;
(b)
where neither a motor vehicle nor motor vessel was used in the commission of
the offence—imprisonment for 3 years.
(a)
drives a vehicle or operates a vessel without due care or attention or without
reasonable consideration for any person; and
(b) by
that conduct, causes serious harm to another,
is guilty of an indictable offence.
Maximum penalty:
(a)
where a motor vehicle or motor vessel was used in the commission of the
offence—
(i)
for a basic offence—imprisonment for 5 years
and, in the case of an offence involving the use of a motor vehicle,
disqualification from holding or obtaining a driver's licence for 1 year
or such longer period as the court orders;
(ii)
for an aggravated offence—imprisonment for
7 years and, in the case of an offence involving the use of a
motor vehicle, disqualification from holding or obtaining a driver's licence
for 3 years or such longer period as the court orders;
(b)
where neither a motor vehicle nor motor vessel was used in the commission of
the offence—imprisonment for 2 years.
(3) Where a convicted
person is disqualified from holding or obtaining a driver's licence—
(a) the
disqualification operates to cancel any driver's licence held by the convicted
person as at the commencement of the period of disqualification; and
(b) the
disqualification may not be reduced or mitigated in any way or be substituted
by any other penalty or sentence.
(4) A person is liable
to be charged with and convicted of an offence against subsection (1) in
respect of each person killed, and of an offence against subsection (2)
in respect of each person who suffers serious harm, in consequence of the same
act or omission.
(5) It is a defence to
a charge of an offence against this section for the defendant to prove that
they were, at the time of the offence—
(a)
carrying out duties as an emergency worker; and
(b)
acting in accordance with the directions of their employing authority; and
(c)
acting reasonably in the circumstances as they believed them to be.
(6) Sections 22,
53B(5), 79B(10) and 175 of the Road Traffic Act 1961 apply in relation
to an offence against this section as if a reference in any of those sections
to an offence against that Act was a reference to the offence against this
section.
(7) In this
section—
"emergency worker" has the same meaning as in section 19A;
"employing authority" has the same meaning as in section 19A.