LUI SAI-SO v. THE QUEEN

CACC000228/1970

IN THE SUPREME COURT OF HONG KONG

(APPELLATE JURISDICTION)

CRIMINAL APPEAL NO. 228 OF 1970

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BETWEEN
	LUI Sai-so	Appellant
	AND
	The Queen	Respondent

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Coram: Full Court (Mills-Owens and Huggins, JJ.)

 

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JUDGMENT

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Mills-Owens J:

1. The appellant was convicted before the District Court on a charge of dangerous driving causing death, to which he pleaded not guilty, He was sentenced to 6 months imprisonment and disqualified for 5 years. He appeals against sentence, including the disqualification. The facts as found by the learned District Judge were that the appellant whilst riding a motor-cycle ran down the deceased, a woman accompanied by two others, as they were crossing on foot an uncontrolled 'stud' pedestrian crossing in Nathan Road, Kowloon; the position at the time being that, as the appellant approached the crossing in the outer lane of traffic, vehicles in the inner and middle lanes had stopped to allow the deceased and her companions to cross. In essence, so far as can be judged from the record, he drove dangerously in that not only should he have observed that the vehicles in the inner and middle lanes were stationary but should have been sufficiently mentally alert to use caution in case the cause of the stoppage of those vehicles was that pedestrians were crossing. There was some estimate by a witness that he approached at an excessive speed but that evidence might be regarded as of little weight, in the circumstances. There was no precise evidence as to how the deceased emerged into the outer lane from behind the stationary vehicles, when she might not have been visible to the appellant, nor as to the deceased's actions immediately prior to the impact.

2. On a consideration of the circumstances, so far as they appear on the record, we were of opinion that the sentence and disqualification were unduly severe; accordingly we substituted such sentence of imprisonment as would permit of the appellant's release from prison today, he having served approximately 6 weeks, and reduced the period of disqualification to 12 months.

 

 

(Mills-Owens J.)

 

Representation:

Pamela Lee for Appellant

William Chan for Respondent (Crown)

Judgment handed down