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Daylesford driver had ‘no comprehension’ during crash

William Swale contested 14 charges over the deaths of five people outside a pub.

William Swale contested 14 charges over the deaths of five people outside a pub. Photo: AAP

A diabetic driver had “no comprehension of what he was doing” when he drove into and killed five patrons outside a pub, an expert says.

William Swale faced the second day of his committal hearing at Ballarat Magistrates Court on Tuesday.

The 66-year-old is fighting 14 charges including five counts of culpable driving causing death, negligently causing serious injury, and reckless conduct endangering live, over the deadly Daylesford pub crash in November 2023.

Prosecutors allege Swale, who was diagnosed with type-1 diabetes in 1994, ignored warnings from a Bluetooth device about his blood glucose levels declining before he suffered a hypoglycaemic episode while driving.

However, Swale’s barrister Dermot Dann KC on Tuesday said the prosecution had “no case” as his client was suffering a severe hypoglycaemic attack and had no understanding of what he was doing.

Endocrinologist John Carter, who has helped create Australian guidelines on diabetes and driving, gave evidence on Tuesday about his report into the crash.

“I have no doubt the severity of neuroglycopenia symptoms indicated [Swale] had no comprehension of what he was doing when he drove across the beer garden and collided with numerous pedestrians,” he told the court, reading his report.

Neuroglycopenia is a shortage of glucose in the brain, usually due to hypoglycaemia.

Swale’s blood glucose levels dropped from 7.8 over two hours to 1.1 after the crash, the court was told. Carter acknowledged this was a “rapid” decline.

His blood glucose device recorded Swale dropped to 2.9 about 5.17pm, which Carter said meant he needed to stop driving and eat something.

At 5.42pm, about half an hour before the crash, Swale went to the winespeake cellar + deli across the roundabout from Royal Daylesford Hotel. However, he was turned away as the store was full.

“He was aware that he needed to have carbohydrate and that was why he went into the cellar and deli,” Carter said.

“In the absence of treatment … high glucose levels and inadequate carbohydrate intake, eventually that person will become disoriented, confused and glucose level drops far enough that we are comatosed.”

Swale returned to his vehicle and sat stationary for some time in the minutes leading up to the crash, Dann said.

He then mounted the kerb in his BMW SUV and hit several people seated outside the Royal Daylesford Hotel.

Pratibha Sharma, 44, her daughter Anvi, 9, and partner Jatin Kumar, 30, and their friend Vivek Bhatia, 38, and his son Vihaan, 11, were all killed.

Dann said there was no evidence of Swale steering or braking before or during the collision.

A police officer noted Swale looked grey after the crash, Dann said. A winespeake worker on Monday said Swale looked “like he was wasted” with his eyes closed and mouth open, when he ran over to find him behind the wheel.

Paramedics treated Swale at the scene, giving him a glucagon injection and sugar water after finding his blood glucose measurement to be dangerously low.

Following the hearing, Magistrate Guillaume Bailin will decide whether Swale should be committed to stand trial over the crash.

-AAP

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