Greater than 50 of Hodder’s household and mates attended Victoria County Courtroom on Friday for a pre-sentence listening to after Mathiasson pleaded responsible to culpable driving inflicting his loss of life.
He additionally pleaded responsible to a cost of inflicting critical damage by careless driving after Hodder’s buddy Emma Swords, 26, broke two ankles within the crash.
The courtroom was instructed that Hodder, Swords and a few mates have been celebrating Swords’ birthday and had simply arrived on the rave when the accident occurred.
Mathiasson, who was additionally out with mates, had been partying since about 11.30pm and consumed pre-mixed cans of Jack Daniels and Coca-Cola whereas driving there from Sunbury.
The courtroom was instructed he had been photographed on an aerial digicam 25 to 30km/h above the velocity restrict on his solution to the rave.
Evaluation of his blood later within the night recorded a blood alcohol focus of 0.219% together with metabolites of cocaine and THC.
Throughout a lot of the listening to, Mathiasson was seen together with his head in his fingers holding a wadded tissue. At occasions he would grow to be visibly crimson within the face and cry as Hodder’s family members spoke.
In emotional and transferring statements to the courtroom, a dozen of Hodder’s household and mates defined the tragic influence of his loss of life on their lives.
She was described as a vibrant and delightful younger girl, passionate and cussed, together with her entire life forward of her earlier than she was cruelly minimize quick.
“Elise’s loss of life ought to by no means have occurred, there isn’t a mitigation. Her future was criminally stolen, together with ours,” mentioned her father, Michael Hodder.
“At 24, she ought to have many years of enjoyable and laughter forward of her. Merely put, there isn’t a future.”
Her mom, Pauline Hodder, mentioned her daughter was stuffed with potential and zest for all times, dedicating her efforts to charitable causes and constructing a profession as a mannequin.
“My daughter was decreased to ashes in a field and I’m heartbroken,” she mentioned.
“What a violent and merciless finish for my sort and loving woman.”
Via tears, Pauline Hodder mentioned it was “insufferable” understanding her daughter was trapped beneath the car for hours.
Emma Swords mentioned it terrified her to be in the identical room as the person who took her finest buddy’s life and made her worry for her life.
She mentioned Mathiasson made an “extremely egocentric and reckless resolution” that left Hodder’s family members in ongoing hell.
“I hate that I survived this fashion… the devastation I really feel is so deep that I’ve tried for months to search out the phrases and I simply can’t,” she mentioned.
“There was no warning when she died. There was no goodbye or final phrases, the lady with one million ideas and opinions taken immediately proper subsequent to me.”
Mathiasson’s lawyer, Rishi Nathwani KC, instructed the courtroom that his shopper would “proceed to dwell with the results of his actions” and stays deeply traumatized.
“We settle for that your actions have been the reason for this horrible tragedy,” he mentioned.
The lawyer mentioned a big jail sentence was inevitable.
He requested Decide Robyn Harper to search out that Mathiasson expressed quick regret from the time of the accident, studying a number of feedback he made to police.
“I don’t care what occurs to me, all I care about is what occurs to that woman,” he mentioned, quoting Mathiasson.
The lawyer defined that his shopper deliberate to go away the car within the car parking zone and go to a different occasion, however made the “silly and deadly resolution” to take the automotive.
He instructed the courtroom {that a} forensic psychologist, Patrick Newton, assessed Mathiasson and fashioned the opinion that he was self-medicating with alcohol to deal with the trauma of his mom’s loss of life.
Crown prosecutor Neill Hutton SC instructed the courtroom that though they might not say how briskly Mathiasson was driving, this was a high-speed accident with “extremely excessive” ranges of intoxication.
“Younger male drivers are over-represented in killing folks on our roads,” he mentioned.
Hutton urged Decide Harper to reject Mathiasson’s declare that he deliberate to go away the car within the car parking zone and adjusted his thoughts shortly earlier than the accident.
Harper thanked the packed courtroom for the dignity and charm they demonstrated.
“Earlier than we conclude, I wish to inform everybody that the sentence shall be primarily based on the regulation,” she mentioned.
“The sentence will under no circumstances be a measure of Ms Hodder’s life or her value.”
She’s going to sentence Mathiasson, who was remanded in custody, on November 10.
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