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SINGAPORE: A driver who sped up in a right-turning taxi in a collision that killed a National University of Singapore (NUS) student and injured three others, was fined S $ 5,000 and banned from driving for two years.
Ng Li Ning, 24, was sentenced in district court last Friday (November 27), after attending several pre-trial conferences. This was after his co-defendant, a taxi driver, was sentenced in August 2019.
The penalties for a charge of dangerous driving at a speed of 83 to 92 km / h came after one of the surviving passengers sued Ng and assigned him 35% responsibility for his role.
Damages have yet to be decided.
READ: Passenger survivor in car accident that killed a fellow undergraduate NUS sues taxi driver, negligent driver
The victims, Kathy Ong, Ting Jun Heng, Zon Lim, and Lim Jin Jie, had taken co-defendant Yap Kok Hua’s taxi and were on their way to NUS Tembusu College on the night of April 19, two years ago.
Yap did not ensure that his student passengers fastened their seat belts before departing. Ms. Ong was 19 at the time and the rest were 22.
When he reached the intersection of Commonwealth Avenue West and Clementi Road around 7:30 p.m. that day, Yap discretely turned right.
Ng, who was 21 at the time, was approaching from the other direction and going straight ahead, with the right of way, according to court documents.
Ng was traveling over the speed limit of 70 km / h and crashed into Yap’s cabin. Both vehicles turned and were seriously damaged, and the cab collided with another car stopped at the intersection.
A report from the Health Sciences Authority later estimated that Ng’s speed was between 92 km / h and 97 km / h a fraction of a second before the collision.
A second report estimated that Ng’s car speed was between 83 km / h and 84 km / h 0.6 seconds before the collision.
Kathy Ong was described by her friends as someone who loved life and made deep connections with those around her. (Photo: Family)
Ms. Ong was taken to the hospital but pronounced dead the same day. Her friends suffered injuries that included fractured spines, head trauma and glass cuts to their wounds.
READ: Kathy was a ‘people person’, loved by many: Family, friends from NUS bachelor who died in a taxi accident in Clementi
Mr. Ting, who was sitting in the back of the cabin, was taken to the hospital with traumatic brain injuries, fractured ribs, multiple pelvic bone fractures, and a kidney laceration. At first he was in a vegetative state and was hospitalized for more than 50 days.
His studies were postponed and he received extensive rehabilitation treatment and suffered medical complications.
READ: Judge Finds Taxi Driver 65% Liable In Car Accident That Killed NUS Student, In Civil Lawsuit For Surviving Passenger
In June, he went to High Court to sue Ng and Yap for negligence, but the case has not yet concluded.
Yap received eight weeks in jail and a five-year driving ban in August 2019 after pleading guilty to one count of negligent act that does not amount to wrongful death, and a second of causing serious injury to the three surviving passengers.
The High Court judge presiding over Mr. Ting’s lawsuit against Ng and Yap found that Ng had failed to maintain proper surveillance and drive with due care at the crossing.
“Having the right of way essentially means that other users must yield or yield,” Judge Aedit Abdullah said in his findings in October.
“But having the right of way does not relieve that particular road user from the need to exercise due care.
“All driving occurs, particularly in urban Singapore, in an environment where there are risks to manage and dangers to be aware of. Even a road user with lights in his favor should make sure to maintain a adequate vigilance and sufficient reaction time has been worked to avoid accidents with reasonable effort “.
The penalties for dangerous driving are a maximum year in jail and a fine of up to S $ 5,000 for the first offense. Repeat offenders face double those penalties.
