An Australian student, who came to Hong Kong for charity work, was given a jail sentence of four years and three months by the High Court for causing the death of a taxi driver in June last year. The fact that he hasn't shown any remorse left the judge disappointed.

The High Court heard that the convict, 23-year-old Kelsey Mudd, who was heavily drunk, sat at the wheel and drove at the driver of the taxi.

The 58-year-old cabbie died after being crushed against a concrete road divider.

Earlier, the sozzled Australian had run into a heated argument with the taxi driver, who in an attempt to get rid of him, stopped the vehicle and got off it. He hoped that the troublesome passenger would also get off and leave the scene. But far from doing that Mudd chose to take control of the steering.

Moments after the taxi driver thudded into the divider, Mudd drove into another cab. And when a police party and an ambulance van arrived, he crashed into yet another cab. This part of the sordid sequence was taped by a TV station. The video footages served as evidence in the court.

The incident happened on the first day of Mudd's charity work, his lawyer said.

After being arrested, the man was found "staggering drunk" and the blood-alcohol level was five times higher than the permissible limit.

The student was convicted of manslaughter, drink driving, and dangerous driving by a five-to-two majority voting of the jury. The Judge Alan Raymond Wright also ordered that his driving license is suspended for five years.

Mudd, however, argued in the court that he was only "partly responsible" for the driver's death. His lawyer said the driver should not have got off his taxi, leaving a drunken passenger inside. The lawyer also blamed the police for failing to perform their duty.

Mudd didn't plead guilty because he doesn't remember what actually happened that night, the lawyer added.

The judge slammed the logic saying it's "baseless and distasteful", adding he's very disappointed that the student didn't show any remorse for the death he caused.

Mudd's father and brother, who were present in the courtroom, looked dejected when the sentence was announced. According to the father, Mudd wasn't treated fairly. He reserves the right to appeal, he said.

China Daily

(HK Edition 10/29/2010 page1)