Woman, 38, charged over Chinatown car accident that killed 6-year-old girl; gag order issued
She faces two charges of careless driving causing death and grievous hurt.
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SINGAPORE: A 38-year-old woman involved in a car accident that killed a six-year-old girl in Chinatown was charged at the State Courts on Wednesday (Apr 8).
The woman was given two charges of careless driving causing death and grievous hurt.
She did not indicate how she would plead. A pre-trial conference for her case will take place on May 13.
The judge has placed a gag order to protect the identity of her six-year-old son, a potential witness in the case. This gag order extends to the woman as his parent, and she cannot be named.
The gag order also covers the vehicle registration number of the car involved in the accident.
The application for a gag order was made by the woman's defence lawyer Mr Navin Thevar. The prosecution did not object to the application.
"It has been the practice of our courts to protect the identities of children who are witnesses to road traffic accidents by also preventing the publication of their adult parents who were involved in the accidents as accused persons," said Mr Thevar.
He cited the example of a 46-year-old Australian driver who killed a pedestrian in a high-speed crash. The offender in that case was not allowed to be named as his two children, who were in his car, were also victims.
Another example Mr Thevar cited was a driver who fatally drove his van over his two-year-old daughter. The offender was also not named so as to protect the identity of his surviving child.
Mr Thevar said the gag order was necessary to shield the accused's son from "the glare of unwanted public scrutiny and embarrassment", and further trauma arising from the accident he witnessed.
"The dangers and risks that I just outlined are particularly acute in the circumstances of the present case because there have been many vitriolic posts made against both my client and against the boy, which are not only untrue, but are of a xenophobic nature," he said.
He included some online posts in documents submitted for the gag order application, but said he would not dignify the posts by reading them out in court.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Vishnu Menon noted that the provision for protecting the identity of the accused's son is in the Children and Young Persons Act.
He said the gag order on the accused's son must extend to her as well, or it will not be effective.
THE ACCIDENT
The victim, six-year-old Sheyna Lashira Smaradiani, died after being hit by a car in an open-air car park near the Buddha Tooth Relic Temple in Chinatown on Feb 6.
According to charge sheets, at about 11.50am that day, the accused allegedly failed to keep a proper lookout while moving off from the stop line when she was turning right at the car park's exit.
This is believed to have led to the collision with Sheyna and her mother, who were crossing the road at the car park's exit.
CNA previously reported that Sheyna suffered severe head injuries and was pronounced dead in the hospital shortly after the accident. Her remains were taken back to Jakarta and she was buried on Feb 8.
Her mother, Ms Raisha Anindra Pascasiswi, was also injured and hospitalised. CNA understands that she has since been discharged and is back in Indonesia.
The accused has been released on bail of S$25,000. She must surrender her passport as part of the usual bail conditions. She must also surrender to custody, make herself available for investigations and attend court hearings for her case.
The punishment for causing death by driving without due care and attention is a jail term of up to three years, a fine of up to S$10,000, or both penalties.
The punishment for causing grievous hurt by driving without due care and attention is a jail term of up to two years, a fine of up to S$5,000, or both penalties.
The offender can also be banned from driving for a period of time.
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