Killer student 'lacks remorse'
Colleen Lee
Friday, October 29, 2010
Australian student Kelsey Lord Michael Mudd was sentenced yesterday
to four years and three months in jail for causing the death of a
taxi driver - with the judge criticizing him for showing no
remorse.
A jury convicted Hong Kong-born Mudd, 23, of the manslaughter of
Wong Chi-ming, 58, by a five to two majority in the Court of First
Instance on Wednesday.
He was also unanimously found guilty of taking a vehicle without
authority, dangerous driving and driving over the legal alcohol
limit.
Mudd, who holds American, Australian and British citizenship, is a
student at California State University.
Justice Alan Wright said the defendant's behavior after the
collision showed he was "staggering drunk." His blood alcohol level
was more than five times over the limit.
He said the student showed no remorse, regret or sorrow over the
incident.
But he took into consideration that Mudd did not intend to drive on
the night of the incident and is a young man still pursuing his
studies.
In mitigation, Mudd's counsel, Christopher Young, said the
defendant was only partly responsible. If Mudd had not been left
alone in the taxi, the incident would not have happened, he
argued.
"The defendant had no excuse for being drunk. His drunken state
must have been evident to the driver, who nevertheless got out of
the car," said Young, adding that "the defendant did not recollect
what occurred."
He said Mudd did not intend to drive the vehicle when he got into
the taxi as a passenger.
Mudd, wearing a black suit, showed little emotion after hearing the
sentence.
The court heard that on June 27 last year, Mudd tried to seize
control of the taxi from Wong on Connaught Road near City Hall in
Central.
Wong tried to get out of the cab to pull Mudd out but was still
strapped in by his seat belt. Wong was dragged as his taxi rammed
into a metal fence dividing Connaught Road.
The vehicle hit two other taxis before stopping, and Wong was left
lying in the road.
While paramedics were attending to him, Mudd suddenly drove off in
the wrong direction, missing several oncoming cars before hitting
another taxi.
Outside court, the eldest brother of the dead driver
slammed the sentence as too light.
"I am furious. How could he be jailed for such a short period for
killing my brother?" he said.
"He simply put the blame on my brother. As a taxi driver, he could
not have refused to let [Mudd] get in the taxi."
The brother, also a night-shift taxi driver, said there were times
when he met drunk passengers who tried to grab his wheel, and it
was difficult to deal with such situations.
He said his brother had been a taxi driver for 30 years and is
survived by his wife and two children in their late
20s.
Mudd's father, Michael Mudd, said: "I'm very disappointed with the
outcome. We think there was enough confusion that night that nobody
really knows what happened and that he was not given the benefit of
the doubt."
He said he will consider all possible legal options.
Mudd's mother, Tasha White, said her son is sorry. "He's very sad
about the taxi driver, what happened to him, but he has no memory
of what happened," she said.
Mudd was spending the summer volunteering at a Hong Kong
charity.
http://www.thestandard.com.hk/news_detail.asp?pp_cat=30&art_id=104369&sid=30094509&con_type=3&d_str=20101029&sear_year=2010