A mom of two who stole the id of the pilot killed within the Sea World helicopter tragedy in a bid to dodge a site visitors ticket has had her fantastic doubled in court docket.
Stephanie Louise Bennett wept overtly as she pleaded responsible to fraud by dishonestly inducing an individual to behave and one depend of acquiring or coping with one other's id to commit an indictable offence in Beenleigh Magistrates Court docket on Friday.
The 33-year-old confessed to utilizing useless pilot Ash Jenkinson's id after she was caught utilizing her cell phone behind the wheel on December 15.
It wasn't the primary time Bennett had been caught on her cell whereas driving, however this time, she couldn't afford the $1078 fantastic and the 4 demerits factors she confronted meant she would lose her licence.
Bennett had been determined to get her life on observe and pay down a debt she already owed to the State Penalties Enforcement Registry.
She had simply began a brand new job as a forklift driver at a warehouse, and if her licence was suspended, she feared she would lose her job.
So, she scoured the obituary notices to pin the fantastic on one other driver.
After a number of makes an attempt to appoint different drivers failed, she selected the main points belonging to Ashley Jenkinson.
She crammed out his title and date of beginning and created a faux handle.
Bennett had by no means met Jenkinson or his devastated associate Kosha Richardson, and his title did not ring a bell with the forklift driver.
In response to her lawyer Zane Chapman, Bennett additionally did not pay a lot consideration to the information.
His shopper had no thought Jenkinson was a pilot who had been killed when two Sea World helicopters collided midair on January 2 and was oblivious to the large publicity surrounding the tragedy.
"She has nominated somebody on-line... it was fairly straightforward to do," Chapman mentioned.
"That's by no means to decrease my shopper's conduct... what she has achieved is dishonest, and he or she is remorseful.
"There isn't a excuse for her conduct."
Chapman mentioned Bennett was deeply embarrassed and had been subjected to huge public humiliation.
"Her title and face have been all around the media and on Fb. You Google her, and he or she comes up. She has been publicly humiliated and is embarrassed to be earlier than the court docket."
Justice of the Peace Mark Howden acknowledged Bennett had made a "grave mistake", one that will have been deeply distressing to Jenkinson's grieving household who reported the id theft, however declined to offer a sufferer affect assertion.
Bennett choked again years the Justice of the Peace mentioned her deception "struck on the coronary heart of the justice system".
"I settle for that you've got made publicly humiliated at work amongst associates and acquaintances," Howden mentioned.
"And I settle for that that humiliation is in all chance ongoing."
Howden mentioned the offence was very critical and would have induced nice misery to Jenkinson's household.
"I do settle for that there might be an affect in your social wellbeing - clearly there already has been."
Bennett was fined $2000 - nearly double the unique fantastic - and a conviction was recorded.
Join right hereto obtain our day by day newsletters and breaking information alerts, despatched straight to your inbox.