The other injured passenger — a female friend of Marsh-Smiler's — suffered a broken arm.
According to an agreed summary of facts, Marsh-Smiler lost control of the vehicle as the road surface on the long straight of tar seal changed to gravel. The vehicle rolled numerous times before coming to rest.
No estimation of speed was involved but Judge Warren Cathcart noted it must have been reasonably sufficient to cause the vehicle to roll the way it had.
Granting counsel Leighvi Maynard's application for Marsh-Smiler to be discharged without conviction, the judge accepted the consequences of a conviction for her would be out of all proportion to the gravity of the offending.
While youth was not a trump card that could be used to avoid conviction, in this case it rightly carried significant weight, the judge said.
Measured here against the moderate gravity of the offending, he was content the consequence of conviction would be out all proportion to it.
The issue of public safety, which the court also had to address, could be appropriately met here by the driver disqualification, Judge Cathcart said.
The sentencing was previously adjourned after an indication from Judge Turitea Bolstad the court might consider a discharge without conviction if Marsh-Smiler completed appropriate alcohol and other drug counselling and a driving course.
She had since done both, Mr Maynard said.
This was a one-off incident for Marsh-Smiler. She did not have a history of bad driving.
She pleaded guilty early and her remorse was apparent. She had attended restorative justice. The victims were people close to her, adding to the emotional impact of the situation for her.
She acknowledged causing “massive damage to people she cared about” and regretted the stupidity of her decision to drink-drive that night.
Mr Maynard said those mitigating factors were sufficient to reduce the gravity of the offending from what was otherwise serious to moderate.
He conceded there were no specific consequences Marsh-Smiler could identify for the court to use in the legal test required for the application.
Because she was still young, Marsh-Smiler did not yet have a foothold in a career and could not yet point to any specific career aspiration that might be at risk if she were convicted, albeit she was contemplating pursuing nursing.
But the court could take into account a general risk to her future prospects, Mr Maynard said.
There was a risk that on seeing she had a conviction, a future employer might simply set her application aside without looking at the circumstances behind it, Mr Maynard said.
Judge Cathcart agreed.
In assessing the gravity of the offending, the judge said it was important not to overstate the significance of the injuries but keep them in proportion to the level of carelessness involved.
Bad driving could result in all manner of injuries. Some of the most serious examples caused none, while small errors of judgement could result in catastrophe, sometimes even fatality.
That said, Marsh-Smiler was fortunate this incident did not result in a more tragic outcome for her passengers, Judge Cathcart said.
He noted the victims' statements for the court in which, despite their injuries, they did not severely criticise Marsh-Smiler but took the view what happened was a simple accident.
One of them said: “It was a stupid mistake that could have happened to anyone”.
