Adelaide Crows defender Josh Worrell has pleaded guilty to aggravated driving without due care over a July crash in which he struck a pedestrian, with the magistrate ruling out a jail term before sentencing next week.
The 25-year-old appeared in the Adelaide Magistrates Court on Friday 30 October and entered the plea over the collision on Port Road at Woodville on 10 July, the ABC reported. A second charge of failing to stop, assist and present to police was dropped by the prosecution.
The court heard Worrell was driving to training when he ran a red light and hit the man at a pedestrian crossing.
“The footage does show his vehicle entering that pedestrian crossing at a somewhat considerable speed, although we don’t allege he was exceeding the speed limit against a red traffic signal that had been displayed for several seconds,” prosecutor Phoebe Foster-Richardson said.
“We submit … that Mr Worrell was either inattentive or distracted.”
No jail term, sentencing on Tuesday
Foster-Richardson told the court the prosecution accepted Worrell was remorseful and did not argue a period of imprisonment was necessary. Instead, prosecutors asked for a conviction to be recorded and for Worrell to receive a short good behaviour bond or community service.
Magistrate Rodney Oates agreed a term of imprisonment was inappropriate and adjourned the matter to consider the penalty. According to Fox Sports, the case returns to court at 9.30am on Tuesday 3 November.
Defence says Worrell stayed with the victim
Defence barrister Andrew Culshaw said his client was “embarrassed and remorseful” and had made a “human mistake”.
“He is incredibly embarrassed and remorseful … to say nothing of relieved because he is acutely aware that this could have been worse,” Culshaw told the court.
Culshaw said Worrell took the injured man to hospital and spent three hours with him. “Rather than simply call for help and move on with his commitments he, I submit, really went above and beyond to assist the victim,” he said.
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When the charges were announced in July, SA Police said the 29-year-old pedestrian had “sustained injuries and was taken to hospital by the driver”.
Worrell spoke in court only to confirm his guilty plea.
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