A RETIREE has been jailed for six months over a fatal car crash in Birkdale last year.
Ian Carr, 66, will spend one-fifth of his 30-month sentence in custody after pleading guilty to dangerous operation of a motor vehicle causing death.
Brisbane District Court heard Carr ran a red light at the intersection of Quarry and St James roads on February 4, 2013, and struck a car driven by 39-year-old Tim Ling.
Mr Ling, a respected physiotherapist and father of two, later died in hospital from his injuries.
Judge Stuart Durward, SC, rejected defence claims on Tuesday that a then-undiagnosed sleep disorder caused the crash rather than inattention.
Carr was diagnosed with idiopathic hypersomnia, a neurological condition that causes excessive daytime drowsiness.
His thoracic physician, Dr Roger Allen said it was possible for people with the condition to perform complex tasks, such as writing, walking or driving, while in a “transitional” stage of sleep with no memory of it afterward.
Carr, who had frequently driven along Quarry Road for 40 years, said the last thing he remembered before reaching the intersection was “fiddling with the radio”.
He said this happened on Birkdale Road, some two and a half kilometres from the crash site.
Defence barrister Chris Wilson argued that it was probable, given the lack of memory and Carr’s sleep condition, that he had driven subconsciously until just before he hit Mr Ling’s car.
Such a scenario, Mr Wilson said, made Carr less criminally culpable than if he’d been deliberately inattentive.
Judge Durward was sceptical of Carr’s claim, suggesting the defendant had adjusted the radio far closer to the crash site.
He said it was unlikely Carr had navigated two sets of traffic lights, a roundabout and a curve in the road in a sleep-like state without incident before the crash.
Acknowledging nine references from people such as Redlands MP Peter Dowling and former Redland Shire Council mayor Don Seccombe, Judge Durward said a wholly-suspended sentence would not convey the seriousness of the offence to the public.
He sentenced Carr to two years and six months’ imprisonment, of which six must be spent in custody.
The court was so full that some family and friends of Mr Ling were forced to watch the proceedings from jurors’ seats.
Family members brought a photograph of Mr Ling into the courtroom, placing it so Carr could see it from the dock.