SEREMBAN: A mother who allowed her underage son to drive her car, which was later involved in an accident claiming three young lives, was fined RM1,500 by the Magistrate’s Court here.
Magistrate Nurul Azuin Mohd Talhah also ordered Nur Farahidayah A. Rahman, 40, to be jailed for three months if she is unable to pay the fine.
“After considering the guilty plea by the accused, mitigating factors and submissions by parties and the aggravating factors, the court hereby fines the accused RM1,500 in default three months’ jail,” said Nurul Azuin.
Nur Farahidayah was charged with letting her 17-year-old son drive her car along Jalan Persiaran Senawang 1 intersection in Taman Matahari Heights at around 8.30pm on March 6 last year.
She was charged under Section 39(5) of the Road Transport Act 1987, which carries a fine of up to RM2,000, a jail term not exceeding six months or both, upon conviction.
Lawyer Johan Radzi asked the court to impose a minimum fine because his client is a single mother and has to provide for her parents and six children, four of whom are still in school.
He said the accused is self-employed and has been running a food business for the past 20 years.
Johan said his client is also a first-time offender and had been cooperative with the authorities probing the case.
Deputy public prosecutor Khairunnisa Zainuddin asked the court to impose the maximum punishment as three teenagers lost their lives due to her negligence.
“Apart from the fatalities, the court also has to consider public interest when passing judgment,” she said.
According to the facts of the case, the accused’s son had run a red light and then crashed into two motorcycles.
Three teenagers aged 15, 16 and 17 were killed in the crash.
Her son had claimed trial when first charged with reckless driving on April 22 last year.
However, he changed his plea to guilty last December and is due for sentencing in May, pending a social report from the Welfare Department.
