Javarney Wayne Drummond (15), Niko William Hill (15), Jack “Jacko” Wallace (16), Joseff “Joey” McCarthy (16) and Andrew Goodger (15) were all killed when the Nissan Bluebird they were traveling in was wrecked in a concrete utility pole on August 6 last year.
Only the driver, 19-year-old Tyreese Fleming, who had a limited license, survived the crash.
This morning, in the Timaru Supreme Court, Fleming was convicted after previously pleading guilty to five charges of dangerous driving, leading to death.
There is a crowded public gallery full of family and friends, some wearing T-shirts in honor of the victims.
Judge Osborne opened the hearing by addressing the court, saying it would be an “important moment for everyone involved” and asking that “everyone respects the process which will be difficult for everyone”.
Harrowing and emotional victim statements from 16 grieving family members are being passed to court this morning.
They spoke of the devastation and heartache at the loss of their young loved ones.
Goodger’s father Richard Goodger paid tribute to a “perfect young lad in the prime of his life” who tragically “made a mistake and got into a vehicle while the driver was drinking”.
“It was hell the night my son never came home,” he told the court.
“I was woken up around 11:50 PM by Andrew’s girlfriend when she called me and told me Andrew had died in a car accident.
“Since Andrew was murdered, I’ve been living in an absolute hellhole.”
His mother Andrea Goodger said her son was born with a hole in his heart and had surgery, but was a real fighter.
A busker, surfer, skateboarder, skier and magician, he is remembered, she said, as a kind, loving child who loved his whole family.
“As a mother, it is terrible to lose a young child in such a way,” she said.
“Tyreese, you caused the deaths of five beautiful boys and I think you should be held accountable for the choices you made.”
His sister Georgia spoke of her heartbreak at the loss of her ‘best friend’.
“Andrew was the best brother I could ever ask for…it will take me years to accept that he is gone,” she said.
“It really hurts to know this is because of your stupid, stupid mistakes.
“You may think you have the crazy side of things, but trust me, you don’t.”
Javarney’s father Stephen Drummond said his “life sucked” and much of his family’s life was missing “because of stupidity and a drunk driver.”
“I’m going to serve a life sentence… because I lost a son.”
Hill’s last words to his mother Carissa Hill were that he loved her.
When she was told that her eldest son – “my greatest achievement” had died, “her heart broke into a million pieces, barely holding on”.
“This pain I feel is like no other pain,” she told the court. “A physical pain like stones piled on your chest, one after the other.
“I miss him with every ounce of mine.”
While accepting that it was an accident, Hill said it was a preventable accident and told Fleming in the dock that he was the reason she was serving a “life sentence.”
Hill’s Aunt Jess Hill said her beloved cousin had been taken from them, “stolen from our lives.”
She spoke of Fleming’s actions that created a ripple effect and destroyed so many lives, after “playing Russian roulette with six lives”.
“I’ll never forgive you for what you’ve done,” she said.
Wallace’s mother Charntel Roberts has terrible visions of her son’s final moments.
“I’m afraid of a future without Jack,” she said.
She told Fleming that her hope for him is that he will come out of this a better person and honor the five lost children by “doing good in this world.”
Fleming was taken to Timaru Hospital with moderate injuries after the crash and posted on social media the next day letting people know he was alive.
A week later, he was released from the hospital.
Fleming was initially charged with five counts of manslaughter and appeared briefly in court in Timaru on December 8 last year.
In April, he pleaded guilty through his attorney Thomas Nation to reduce the dangerous driving charge resulting in death.
After his final court hearing, Stephen Drummond, whose 15-year-old son Javarney was killed in the crash, spoke of his loss.
Life was difficult, he said, “living from day to day”.
Since the crash, he has struggled with the loss of a beloved son.
“It won’t bring my son back,” Drummond said.
And he struggles to feel much sympathy for the driver.
“At the end of the day, if you drink alcohol and put your keys in the ignition and drive, why would anyone feel sorry for him if he took your child’s life? There are two sides to it. It sucks to be in my situation.”
Fleming received his restricted driver’s license on August 4 last year, the court heard today.
On August 7, around 6:20 p.m., Fleming was given two boxes of a vodka-based alcoholic drink and drove to the local skate park in Caroline Bay.
Goodger and Hill were with him and soon after, Drummond, Wallace and McCarthy were joined in the park.
Between 6:40 PM and 6:58 PM, they spent time drinking with Fleming, who posted a video to Snapchat in which he “vortexed” at least two bottles, moving the contents.
Between 6:58 PM and 7:02 PM, Fleming got in and out several times, opening and closing the trunk.
At 7:02 p.m. everyone got into the car except Goodger who was standing behind him.
Fleming got out, heard the court, opened the trunk and Goodger got in.
They drove off, with Fleming in violation of his restricted permit.
In the trunk, Goodger called a friend and during the conversation a voice was heard telling Fleming to speed up.
At the intersection at Seadown Rd, Fleming failed to approach cautiously, nor did he make any attempt to stop, McRae said.
He did not brake and took the corner at a speed of 110 to 115 km/h.
Fleming lost control and swerved up the grass verge.
The overload of the car and the unbalanced weight of a passenger in the trunk impacted his ability to control the car and he hit a large concrete utility pole at a speed of between 107 and 115 km/h.
In the collision, the car broke in two and Wallace and Hill were thrown from the car.
All passengers were killed instantly, the court heard.
Fleming was taken to hospital and blood was drawn an hour and 43 minutes after the crash.
The sample gave a result of 50 ± 2 milligrams of alcohol per 100 milliliters of blood.
The next day, the defendant posted on social media from Timaru hospital “hi everyone just wanted to say I’m not dead. I’m very lucky to be alive and I can’t believe what happened and I’m so, so I’m sorry to the families I’ve hurt because of stupid mistakes I made that cost five lives.”
The crash, which was one of the worst seen on South Island roads in decades, devastated the Timaru community.
“Police would like to recognize the families of the young men,” Aoraki Area Commander Inspector David Gaskin said after the charges were filed.
“It has been an incredibly difficult time to cope with the loss of their loved ones who have passed away in such dire circumstances.
“Timaru is a small community and a number of people have been affected by this tragedy.”