A Tauranga driver has admitted she was responsible for causing the death of an elderly man who was bowled on a Bureta pedestrian crossing.
Joyce Margaret Avery, 75, of Brookfield, pleaded guilty to a charge of careless use of a motor vehicle causing the death of Cyril Jaggard in the Tauranga Community Magistrate's Court on Friday.
No conviction has yet been entered against Ms Avery's court record.
The police summary of facts revealed that Mr Jaggard, 87, was walking across the Vale St pedestrian crossing near Bureta Rd about 9.45am on March 23 this year.
Ms Avery, who was driving her Nissan along Vale St towards Bureta Rd at about 50 km/h, failed to see the victim walking in front of her, the summary said.
After being struck by her car, Mr Jaggard was thrown into the air, and he landed heavily on the roadway a short distance away.
Several eyewitnesses tried to help him, but Mr Jaggard died at the scene.
Ms Avery told police that she had not seen the victim on the pedestrian crossing as she had been focused on vehicles at the nearby intersection.
The defendant also told police that she "felt terrible" about what happened and she was "100 per cent at fault".
Her lawyer, Matthew Bates, who entered the guilty plea on her behalf, asked
Community Magistrate Sherida Cooper not to enter a criminal conviction at this time.
Mr Bates said he had only just received all the police disclosure materials, and wanted time to research whether his client could apply for a discharge without conviction.
Ms Avery regularly travelled to the UK and Canada to visit family, and a conviction may restrict her ability to enter these countries, he said.
Ms Cooper adjourned the case until November 2 and directed a restorative justice meeting with the victim's family should be explored at the defendant's request.