Judge Considers Sentence for Driver Four Times Over Limit in Fatal Crash

A New South Wales District Court judge is considering the sentence for a man who was more than four times over the legal blood alcohol limit when he caused a crash that killed his former partner near Orange. Rolong Stanley pleaded guilty to aggravated dangerous driving causing the death of 42-year-old Justine Hammond following the fatal incident along Lake Canobolas Road in February of last year.

During the sentencing hearing before Judge Penny Musgrave, the court heard that Stanley was driving with a blood alcohol concentration of 0.217 grams per 100ml, significantly exceeding the high-range prescribed concentration limit of 0.15. Judge Musgrave emphasized during proceedings that the tragedy could have been entirely avoided if Stanley had complied with an active apprehended domestic violence order (AVO) protecting Ms Hammond, which had been in place since November 2024.

According to agreed facts presented in court, Ms Hammond and Stanley had been drinking cask wine together inside a Holden Rodeo ute at a large apple orchard along Canobolas Road at around 2 p.m. on Sunday, February 9. Nearly three hours later, Stanley drove off with Ms Hammond in the passenger seat, heading south along Lake Canobolas Road.

Investigators established that as Stanley navigated a slight right-hand turn, the vehicle's tyres struck the grass nature strip. Although he initially steered the car back onto the roadway, he lost control, causing the ute to rotate clockwise, strike an embankment, flip onto its roof, and collide with a large tree. Ms Hammond sustained fatal multiple injuries to her head, neck, chest, abdomen, and upper limbs, and died at the scene. Emergency services extricated Stanley from the wreckage before flying him to Westmead Hospital for medical treatment.

In addition to the aggravated dangerous driving and high-range drink driving charges, Judge Musgrave noted she must account for several other compounding factors. At the time of the crash, Stanley was driving an unregistered vehicle carrying a defect notice while disqualified from holding a driver's licence. The judge observed that these associated offenses placed additional weight on the ultimate sentence.

Crown prosecutor Craig Evans argued during the hearing that Stanley's moral blameworthiness was extremely high, pointing out that the offender had two prior drink driving convictions on his record. Mr. Evans asserted that Stanley was well aware he should not have been behind the wheel. Police investigations concluded that severe intoxication was a major contributing factor to the collision, specifically ruling out the poor and patchy condition of the unmarked roadway as a primary cause.

Representing the defense, public defender Ian Nash conceded that the offense fell within a mid-range of objective seriousness. Mr. Nash told the court that Stanley expressed remorse, feeling sad and heartbroken over his actions. He asked the judge to take into consideration Stanley's impoverished upbringing in Vanuatu, alongside the social and cultural isolation he experienced while working to send financial support back to his family.

Judge Musgrave highlighted the inherent dangers of the location at the time of the accident, noting that the area near Lake Canobolas features active vineyards, orchards, and restaurants during clear weekend weather, meaning the route was not lightly traveled.

The NSW District Court is scheduled to hand down Rolong Stanley's sentence next week.