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A drugged driver with more than six times the “high-risk” level of cannabis in his system was going about 130km/h in the seconds before he smashed into a car and killed retired Rotorua couple John and Janice Christensen, police say.
Hemana Stephen Morgan-Edmonds, 22, appeared in the Rotorua District Court on Wednesday and pleaded guilty to four charges, including two counts of drugged driving causing death and two counts of drugged driving causing injury.
Two other charges – dangerous driving and driving while forbidden – were to be withdrawn by the Crown at sentencing.
The Christensens’ daughter, Nadia, told the Rotorua Daily Post there must be “meaningful consequences” for Morgan-Edmonds if any good was to come out of losing her parents in such tragic circumstances.
Hemana Morgan-Edmonds appears in the Rotorua District Court charged with two counts of drugged driving causing the deaths of John and Janice Christensen. Photo / Kelly Makiha
A police summary of facts released to the Rotorua Daily Post said the Mazda Morgan-Edmonds was driving on December 18 last year was the same unwarranted and unregistered vehicle police had found him driving two months earlier and ordered off the road.
The Rotorua man had also been forbidden from driving since being found driving without a licence by police in June 2021.
The summary said that at 10.15am on December 18, Morgan-Edmonds was driving east on Pohutukawa Drive. He had a passenger in the front seat and one sitting in the back.
He turned left on to Te Ngae Rd/State Highway 30, an area with a speed limit of 70km/h, heading northeast and approached a car travelling in front of him.
The summary said he accelerated and overtook the car using the flush median strip at a speed estimated between 120km/h and 140km/h. He pulled back into his lane and drove past Robinson Ave.
The Christensens had left their Hannah’s Bay home in their Citroen vehicle and were stopped at a give-way sign on the corner of Hannah Rd and Te Ngae Rd to turn right. Janice was driving and John was next to her.
The Christensens started turning on to Te Ngae Rd. Morgan-Edmonds was coming the other way, still speeding. The vehicles collided in the middle of the road.
The summary said Christensen’s vehicle was pushed off the road into a ditch.
Police calculated Morgan-Edmonds was travelling about 132km/h in the seconds before he hit their vehicle. His speed at the time of braking was calculated at 117km/h and 98km/h at the time of impact.
Janice Christensen, a 78-year-old retired teacher, died instantly on impact. John Christensen, an 82-year-old retired property investor and entrepreneur, and the occupants of Morgan-Edmonds’ vehicle were taken to Rotorua Hospital but John Christensen died in hospital from his injuries.
Flowers near the scene of a crash on Te Ngae Rd where Jan and John Christensen were killed on December 18 last year. Photo / Alex Cairns
A sample of Morgan-Edmonds’ blood revealed he had between 19 and 35 nanograms of cannabis per millilitre of blood. The summary said a “high-risk” level is 3 nanograms of cannabis per millilitre of blood.
Morgan-Edmonds’ backseat passenger suffered fractures to her body and jaw as well as a broken arm and at the time the summary was written, it said she was still recovering.
His other passenger sustained shattered kneecaps, a broken collarbone and broken ribs. She was not able to walk for two months and the summary said she was also still recovering. Morgan-Edmonds also suffered serious injuries.
He told police he saw the Christensens’ vehicle and tried to avoid it, the summary said.
In court, Crown Solicitor Amanda Gordon said the Crown agreed not to bring any evidence relating to the charges of dangerous driving and driving while forbidden upon Morgan-Edmonds’ guilty pleas to the other four charges.
Judge Robert Spear remanded Morgan-Edmonds on his existing bail terms for sentencing on December 12.
Morgan-Edmonds’ lawyer, Matthew Jenkins, asked for his client to be referred to Mana Social Services for restorative justice to be considered.
The couple were killed after the crash on State Highway 30 in Rotorua on Monday. Nadia Christensen posted on Facebook that her parents Jan and Johnny Christensen (pictured) were killed in a crash near their Rotorua home on Monday.
’An immense waste of life’
Nadia Christensen spoke to the Rotorua Daily Post on behalf of their family, saying they were grateful to the police and emergency services for everything they did at the scene of the crash and afterwards.
“We are relieved the driver pleaded guilty and spared us the trauma of reliving the last moments of our parents’ lives.”
She said the fact he was driving under the influence of drugs and driving dangerously made it worse.
“An immense waste of life because of a person’s selfish actions.”
She said his actions had “ongoing consequences” for everyone involved, including those injured in his car.
“We see too many avoidable accidents occur because of the unthinking and selfish actions of a few. There must be meaningful consequences that others can see if any good is to come out of this tragedy.
“[My parents] were well-loved and we miss them terribly.”
Kelly Makiha is a senior journalist who has reported for the Rotorua Daily Post for more than 25 years, covering mainly police, court, human interest and social issues.
