Sakura Hall, 2, died in a crash at Mamaku on May 22.
Sakura Hall, 2, died in a crash at Mamaku on May 22.
A man has appeared in the Rotorua District Court charged with drugged driving causing the death of a 2-year-old girl at Mamaku.
The man, who has been granted interim name suppression, has not entered a plea to a charge of drugged driving causing the death of Sakura Hall.
Sakura wasa passenger in a vehicle allegedly driven by the accused when it collided with the back of Rotorua Lakes Council contractor Smart Environmental’s rubbish truck on Dansey Rd shortly before 8am on May 22.
It is alleged the man was found with nearly three times the high-risk level of cannabis in his blood.
Police on Dansey Rd after the fatal crash on May 22. Photo / Ben Fraser
A charging document supplied to the Rotorua Daily Post said it is alleged that a blood specimen, taken after the crash, contained evidence of THC, the main psychoactive compound in cannabis. It is alleged that the blood concentration of THC was 8 nanograms per millilitre of blood. The legally defined high-risk level is 3 nanograms.
According to the document the charge is brought under the Land Transport Act 1998 and carries a maximum sentence of 10 years’ imprisonment or a fine of $20,000.
The man appeared before Judge Dean Blair via audio-visual link.
Police at the SH5/Dansey Rd intersection. Photo / Ben Fraser
Duty lawyer Dafydd Malcolm asked for interim suppression until a lawyer could be assigned.
Judge Blair said interim suppression would remain until the man’s next appearance, due on September 2.
He commented that there could not be an expectation that name suppression could “float on”, and the assigned lawyer would need to address the grounds for continued suppression at the September 2 hearing.
“There is my decision in what is a tragic and difficult situation,” Judge Blair said.
The man was remanded on bail.
Sakura was only five weeks from her third birthday when she died.
Her uncle, Jesse Tamm, said in a statement at the time that the circumstances of her death were “too heartbreaking to comprehend”.
The statement, on behalf of Sakura’s maternal side of the family, said she was a vibrant spirit who had a gentle heart and bright future.
It said her life was “cut short in an instant”, and her death left her family in deep shock and sorrow.
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.
