'Nothing short of catastrophic': Man whose driving caused firefighter's death jailed
A man whose dangerous driving caused the death of a firefighter during last summer's horror bushfire season has been jailed.
Novak John Selby, 47, will spend a maximum of two years and three months in prison after pleading guilty to dangerous driving that caused the death in January of Mathew Kavanagh, 43, on the Goulburn Valley Highway at Thornton, north-east of Melbourne.
Before he died, Mathew Kavanagh had put out seven out-of-control campfires.
Mr Kavanagh, a Forest Fire Management Victoria firefighter, was a passenger in a utility vehicle being driven by John Martyn, who survived.
On Tuesday County Court judge Gavan Meredith reminded Selby that he had initially denied responsibility for the crash.
“In response to Mr Martyn having told a police officer that your vehicle was on the wrong side of the road, you responded, ‘No, you were on the wrong side of the road,’ ” Judge Meredith said.
“Your actions at the scene of the accident in seeking to blame ... the other driver do not reflect well on you, nor does your indication to police that you would not present yourself at the final hearing of this matter.”
The judge said the consequences of Selby's offending were "nothing short of catastrophic".
The court heardSelby had written a letter of apology to the victim’s family.
Mr Kavanagh died after the passenger side of the truck he was in was struck by Selby’s Toyota Land Cruiser. After the crash, Selby briefly lost consciousness before struggling out of his vehicle. He spent three days in hospital.
In a police interview following his release from hospital, he said that immediately after the crash he ran over to the other vehicle and asked the driver, “What were you doing? You were in my lane.”
He later accepted that he caused the crash.
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Prosecutors conceded there was evidence that suggested the dangerous driving was a result of momentary inattention, and that there was no evidence of speeding, using a mobile phone or other poor driving prior to the crash.
"Your attention was elsewhere for such a period of time that whilst negotiating a bend in the road, you crossed completely into the oncoming lane,” Judge Meredith said.
Selby has served 232 days of pre-sentence detention. He will be eligible for parole in 15 months and had ben disqualified from obtaining a driver's licence for 20 months.
He was also fined $500 for having trace amounts of cannabis in his system before the crash. The prosecution conceded the trace amounts did not effect his driving ability.