Greenwald drink-driver sentenced over fatal crash at Lyons

Michael Gill, 43, had been at his father's house in Mount Gambier on the night of November 18, 2022, and was driving home to Portland when a drunk-driver crossed onto the wrong side of the Princes Highway.

The two cars collided head on.

Mr Gill died at the scene.

Kane Mueller, 22, later pleaded guilty to culpable driving causing his death and on October 6 was jailed for seven years and two months.

Judge Kevin Doyle set a non-parole period of four years and four months.

He said Mr Gill was loved by his family and would be profoundly missed by them.

The judge said Mr Gill's father carried guilt because his son was driving home from his house on the night he lost his life.

The father and son had re-connected just one year earlier, the court heard.

The judge said Mr Gill's mother had nightmares with the image of local police coming to her door in the early hours of the morning.

"Since the death of her son her days of enjoyment are few and far between," he said.

In the lead up to the fatal crash Mueller had consumed at least eight schooners of beer at a Heywood pub before leaving with a six pack of full-strength beers.

He collided with a 'keep left' sign on the way to a friend's house where he kept drinking beer.

Mueller was observed at the house slurring his words, swaying and vomiting.

He was offered a bed to sleep in and urged not to drive home but he did.

Mueller was a probationary driver who was supposed to have a blood alcohol reading of 0.

The judge said his reading was three times the legal limit for a fully licensed motorist.

He said it was unclear how Mueller's car ended up on the wrong side of the highway but it "no doubt" happened because of his intoxication.

"The signs you were drunk were very clear," he said.

"To cause a head-on after deciding to drive when you can't walk straight and you're vomiting is a serious example of culpable driving."

Judge Doyle said Mueller was suffering an alcohol-use disorder in the lead up to the fatal crash, often consuming 10 or more stubbies of beer a night.

He said the man suffered injuries in the crash and had since been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder.

The court heard Mueller had stopped drinking alcohol after the collision but had relapsed on about 10 occasions.

The judge accepted the man was remorseful for his actions, cooperative with police and willing to facilitate the course of justice at the earliest opportunity.

He said while Mueller's rehabilitation was an important factor in sentencing, a message must be sent that "the community will not tolerate innocent people being killed by those who drink and then drive".

During the plea hearing a close friend of Mueller said in a character reference she'd witnessed the extremes of his mental torment, depression and "at times utter despair" as he tried to come to terms with the consequences of his actions.

"There have been countless times we've been talking for hours and hours, crying to the point he couldn't catch his breath, unable to wrap his head around what he has done," she wrote.

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