The driver of a car which struck and seriously injured a child on a Dunedin pedestrian crossing just before last Christmas has admitted responsibility.
Sheena Margaret McIntosh Daisley (37), unemployed, told police she sneezed and closed her eyes momentarily as she was approaching the Riselaw Rd crossing and failed to see the little girl.
Daisley appeared before Judge Stephen O'Driscoll in the Dunedin District Court yesterday and admitted causing injury to the 10-year-old by driving carelessly on December 22.
She was convicted and remanded on bail to July 13 for a restorative justice assessment and sentence.
At the request of prosecutor Sergeant Ross Hutton, Judge O'Driscoll permanently suppressed the name of the child.
The 10-year-old had checked both ways before stepping on to the crossing about 3pm on December 22, the summary said.
At the same time, Daisley was travelling north on Riselaw Rd in her mother's Mazda and had just rounded a moderate left-hand bend near the Panmure Rd intersection.
There was about 120m of unobstructed visibility towards the crossing outside a primary school but at no time did the defendant see the child, who was crossing from her right.
Daisley was unaware of the position of the child, who was seven to eight metres across the crossing when she was hit by the car's left front bumper-bar and left headlight.
The Mazda struck her left leg, causing her head and left buttock to collide with the car body. She then fell to the left, hitting the road twice before landing on the grass verge to Daisley's left, about 15 metres from the crossing.
As a result of the collision, the girl was taken to hospital in a critical condition with serious injuries including a spiral fracture to the left thigh, collapsed lungs and a severe brain injury.
She underwent six operations, spent two weeks in the Intensive Care Unit and was now at an Auckland rehabilitation centre for children with disabilities, where she was expected to remain until the middle of this month.
Her long-term prognosis was unknown, the summary said. She had limited mobility, tired easily and could not cope with everyday tasks.
She was not expected to return to school for up to two years.
Daisley told police she had sneezed and closed her eyes "for the blink of an eye" as she approached the crossing. She did not see the child until the impact occurred, she said.
