Hit-and-run youth faces sentencing

By Carly Udy
Life for Pikimeene Muru has never been easy - but she's a fighter.
Her mother, Marae Tukere, yesterday stood in court and wept for "our girl", whom she hopes will one day fulfil the dreams that were snatched from her when she was struck in a hit-and-run by teenager Uira Mehaka Thomas.
Pikimeene is now in the Phoenix Head Injury Unit at Waikato Hospital.
Tauranga District Court was full of emotions yesterday as Pare Tauariki - the mother of Thomas - also stood up and expressed her grief.
It was the first time the two families had made contact since the accident.
The sombre mood foreshadowed the sentencing of Thomas, 17, who previously admitted his guilt after hit-and-run incident at Mount Maunganui early on New Year's Day.
Thomas was sentenced to 250 hours' community work and 12 months' supervision for one charge each of careless driving causing injury, failing to stop to ascertain injury and drink driving.
He was ordered to pay $1000 in reparation to Pikimeene and was disqualified for driving for 18 months.
Sixteen-year-old Pikimeene was walking along Marine Parade at Mt Maunganui with a friend when she stepped out to kick a block of ice lying on the road after New Year celebrations.
Her deafness meant she never heard the van that rounded a corner and hit her. She was left with a broken jaw, spinal injuries and a swollen brain.
The driver of the van - Thomas - took off, leaving Pikimeene lying in the middle of the road.
He handed himself in to police four hours after the crash, saying he thought he had only struck her hand. A breath test gave a reading of 237 micrograms of alcohol per litre of breath - 87 micrograms over the legal alcohol limit for those aged under 20.
Wiping away streaming tears, Ms Tukere told the court that Pikimeene, a student at Sacred Heart College, had overcome many challenges in her life, including meningitis as a toddler, which left her profoundly deaf.
Her father had also been seriously injured in a car accident, which left him in a wheelchair.
Pikimeene had achieved at school through help from a teacher aide - recently obtaining 103 NCEA level 1 credits - but had continually struggled to understand instructions and fit in, Ms Tukere said.
Despite it all, she was a determined child, who gave life her all and in return excelled in netball and waka ama competitions. She aspired to be a PE teacher.
Her mother said it was hoped Pikimeene, who is from Ngaruawahia, would make a full recovery. While she is slowly learning to walk again, she needed help to care for herself, including being fed and helped to the toilet.
Ms Tukere said the accident had placed emotional and financial strain on the family and caused them to feel "helpless".
"In all this time we have heard nothing from this boy and his family, yet he is responsible," she said through tears.
"Pikimeene has been through enough in her life and certainly does not need this".
Addressing the family in te reo Maori to begin with, Thomas' mother Pare Tauariki said their whanau had previously tried to contact Pikimeene's but had been unsuccessful.
Ms Tauariki said her son was not a careless person but had "slipped over" in life.
"The wound is so deep. I know he is very remorseful. Things haven't been the same for him, there is physiological trauma and the memory will always be there."