I still want to know what type of car it was !!

An SUV, 4WD or a V8 ?

If we want to be serious about reducing the roll toll and the resulting cost, emotional, physical and economic the government has to adress the issue of inappropriate car size, car shape and car SPEED.

Scout said:

Hamlet

No one has wanted the young girl in this article to walk off scot-free. Where did you get this idea? Some of us see that vengeance and retribution as suitable punishment, others see that punishmnet would be more effective if it included rehabilitation and a chance for redemption.

In a previous point Scout talked about community service as 'punishment'.

Punishment should be more than a little inconvenience for one day a week for a year. It should also be rememembered that large numbers of people do community service because they want to. Your suggestion that community service is an adequate punishment is to denegrate all those who do voluntary community service.

This killer driver did not just do a little shoplifting. She didn't spray some graffiti somewhere. She didn't swear at a police officer.

BY A CRIMINAL ACT SHE KILLED SOMEONE AND MAIMED TWO OTHERS.

Just how would you tell her that this was wrong? Maybe stop her from buying new clothes or shoes for a month? Send her to bed without dinner for a couple of nights? Confiscate her i-Pod for a week? Limit her to 2 phone calls a day?

Please tell me, what can punishment can equate to driving in a criminal manner and killing someone?

Anyone can express remorse. I bet she didn't even think of the consequences as she pushed her young foot down on the accelerator, probably with a huge smile on her face and the rush of adreneline in her veins.

Then she killed someone, and you would give her a 'stay out of gaol card' because she is young and female.

Well, equality cuts both ways - if you wanted to be treated as equal, accept equality of punishment.

Jkenno, your own figures and statements show you the reality if you look. We have a growing prison population and a growing crime rate, so hand smacks and verbal retribution isn't working. Can't you see that your feely good approach to education, sees the youth of today disregarding anything but themselves and its people like you that are causing this collapse.

How can you educate people in responsibility for their actions if you have an education system that is run and operated by people that have learnt their luife experiences in a class room and have never been a part of real life, just the education system.

Look at the psychological and social sciences, you have highly educated people who know nothing, except what comes out of a book. So they have no idea how to talk to these people that have erred in life. All they can do is put forward these theories of pats on the head and poor soul approaches. I talk to these people and they haven't got a clue. They are completely useless, if they weren't then we wouldn't have the growing mental illnesses, community violence and crimes rates.

Use all the stats you like mate, they still can't mask the reality that those who are in control and direct what is done on these social fronts, are completely bereft of understanding. This shows out in all the stats you can produce.

The next thing you know this girl will be suing the car manufactures, the street lights, the road and her passengers for not stopping her from speeding or providing her with the right situations to stop her committing an offence. Then she will sue the other parents for making her sad about killing their daughter. Yep you've done a good job with your approaches. She will be out shopping within the week and will forget it quickly, those with little responsibility or care for others are like that, aren't they.

BTW, I checked yesterday, there are many correspondence courses available for the incarcerated that don't require on line study, covering all fields.

A few comments:

The car being driven by the killer driver was a Peugeot Convertible Cabriolet, probably a 206. The list price for this vehicle is around $32,000. I doubt whether this car was bought from the proceeds of weekend work at MacDonald’s or Coles. If it was the later 307 then multiply the blow figures by about 1.4.

It has a 1.6 litre engine, and is essentially a base model sports car, designed to appeal to the young driver, It has a top sped of 180 km/hr, or 70 km/hr faster than the maximum speed limit of cars in NSW and twice the maximum speed that P plate drivers can legal drive.

It is not basic transport, but more of an ego boosting ‘toy’ vehicle. The perfect present from rich parents to a spoilt child.

The defence barrister in this case, Mr Clive Stern SC, is a very able advocate. He can be more often seen as defence counsel in murder trials, or trials involving basic issues of law rather than in traffic matters in Local Court.

And what would I consider to be an adequate punishment for this driver?

Maybe two years weekend detention, so that she would be isolated from her weekend social life for two years, whilst still being able to work or study. Would that meet the requirements of the ‘rehabilitation’ fans here? She would not be in the general prison population, and would still have opportunities to study whilst in detention.

And one other thing.

In my opinion she should be prohibited from ever holding a drivers licence – for life. So each day that she cannot simply get into the drivers seat to go out or go shopping, or drop her children off at school, she will be reminded of the dead friend who she deprived of the opportunity to live, to go out, to go shopping, to have children.

This may make her reflect on the fact that she killed someone.

Lastly, look at where Sebastian De Brennan’s article was originally published: The Mosman Daily: Playing to the audience!

She is of legal age to drive a motor vehicle. She is of legal age to vote. She is of legal age to do a number of other things. She is of legal age to be punished as an adult.

I do not feel sad for her. She is a criminal.

She killed and maimed.

In gaol she will have many comforts, and a heap of time to reflect on her negligent behaviours.

Community service for this young woman would be a joke.

Let her do her time in gaol - and then do community service as her rehab time.

I have no time for the snivel libertarians
Kay

1. The girl in question was a minor at the time of her negligence.

2. I believe that we all make mistakes in life and the very young, especially, need a chance to turn their lives around.

3. I believe in rehab for both male and female - Hamlet

4. It would appear that certain posters here are SO perfect they have never made a mistake or regretted anything in their lives. I can only stand humbled at your glorious superiority.

5. Kalweb, for a mental health nurse I would thought you were above nasty little insults such as "snivel libertarians". How pathetic, because I believe that people can be redeemed their lives turned around and you don't? So you resort to insult? I am so disappointed in you - it is one thing to disagree with a POV, but a professional like you claim to be resorting not only to childish tactics but not believing that someone can make a change to their lives, leaves me very saddened. I'm really sorry for you Kay, I had always thought better of you.

Why not just hang all these dreadful youngsters in case they make any more mistakes or do something wrong.

We can't have any one ever doing any thing wrong now can we? Hang 'em all. In fact why don't we have pre-emptive death penalties?

ANyone see Minority Report.

Anyone one here have an imagination?

I guess if you're perfect you don't need to imagine the possibility of a better world.