KEY POINTS:
The devastated mother of a teenage girl killed when she was run down by a car outside a party says she has to accept there are some things a parent cannot control.
Sally Rossiter told the Herald her 16-year-old daughter Hannah did not tell her much about Saturday
night's party in Christchurch, but she trusted her.
"Maybe there isn't anything we can do to completely protect our children," Mrs Rossiter said.
"They are going to do things. And unfortunately sometimes they are going to end in tragedy, even if their heads are on straight and their hearts are in the right place."
Her daughter and Jane Young, also 16, died after a car hit at least 10 people outside the 20th birthday party in St Albans.
Mrs Rossiter and Jane's parents spoke for the first time yesterday about their loss.
Jane's father, Harry Young, said his daughter was about to leave the out-of-control party when she was killed.
At least one other young person was still in a critical condition last night in Christchurch Hospital. Three others were in a serious but stable condition, and another was to be moved out of intensive care.
The alleged driver, former representative boxer Lipine Sila, 22, showed little emotion when he appeared in the Christchurch District Court yesterday to face two charges of murder.
The factory hand entered no plea, and will reappear in court next week.
Mrs Rossiter said she felt no anger towards Sila.
"I really feel sad for him. I feel like he did something that he couldn't have thought of the consequences of his actions. He's ruined his own life and many others."
Mrs Rossiter last spoke to Hannah before she went to stay with her father about 4pm on Saturday.
"I just gave her a big hug. I knew she was going out, but it was pretty hard to find out where she was going.
"We had no idea that this [party] was where she was going. Had we known, I think it was the wrong place for her to be.
"She would have been fine, except that she was in the wrong place at the wrong time."
If she had the chance now, she would tell her daughter, "Never stand in the road".
"But I don't think Hannah did anything wrong. Some things are going to be unavoidable."
Hannah went to St Margaret's College in Christchurch, which was "a huge part of her life".
"She had really, really wonderful friends here. They were just really nice kids. I trusted them implicitly."
She was involved in netball, touch rugby, volleyball and dragon boating. When she wasn't playing sport, she enjoyed being with friends.
"Her hobby was socialising. She had a real zest for life."
Her whole family were struggling with the loss.
"I didn't know I could cry so much," Mrs Rossiter said. "I worry about the next day, and the next day. And waking up each day is so hard, because that is the time I had with Hannah, in the mornings."
A distraught Mr Young said Jane called her mother about 10pm to check in for the evening and say she was fine. Fifteen minutes later the party started to get out of control.
"She realised it was getting out of hand and she texted her friend - who was also there - to say, 'Come outside, we are going'," Mr Young told the Herald last night.
"The friend came out and stood next to her and one got hit and the other didn't."
The first the couple knew of what had happened was when the mother of one of her friends rang to say there were text messages "flying around that Jane had been injured and taken to hospital".
As the Youngs rushed to the hospital they feared Jane might have broken bones or, worse, that she might be unconscious.
"When we got there they pulled us to one side and told us that she had not pulled through.
"When we went through to see her she had big black eyes, a big bandage on her head to cover up the injuries and a tube in her mouth."
Mr Young last night described his daughter as a beautiful, innocent 16-year-old.
"She was bright and vivacious and outgoing and the sort of person everybody likes."
His wife, Lorraine, said her daughter was "very very precious to me. I don't want to plan a funeral for my 16-year-old daughter."
The Youngs say they had no idea the party would get so big. "We had absolutely no idea it would be a massive gathering of people and get out of hand."
Mr Young said he trusted his daughter and her friends.
"A lot of her friends were boys. They were nice lads, and we knew that they would look after her, keep an eye on her."
One of those boys was standing next to Jane when the car struck her and was also injured.
"He was in the next bed in the hospital, injured, and he apologised to us for not looking after her but he did his best."
Jane grew up in England. The family, including three boys, moved to New Zealand nearly five years ago.
"We came here because we thought it would be safer and a better life for the kids."