Victim's family slam 'weak, cowardly' truckie who faked fainting spells
A truckie who faked fainting spells, in an attempt to avoid conviction over the death of a much-loved teacher, has been labelled “weak and cowardly”.
Ken Pillar continued the ruse in an Adelaide dock on Wednesday; collapsing thee times as Mary Dowdell’s heartbroken family said they were “disgusted” and “insulted” by his ploy.
Ms Dowdell’s pregnant daughter Kristin revealed the devastating impact the 61-year-old’s death had on the family during his sentencing submissions hearing today.
“It’s very hard to not have her here at the moment, sorry... It’s just really hard,” she said.
Pillar was convicted of killing Ms Dowdell on the Swanport Bridge in June 2015, despite claiming he passed out moments before his truck hit her car.
"Why you tried to avoid prosecution by faking this condition is beyond me," Mrs Dowdell's other daughter Nikki added, fighting back tears.
"It was such a weak and cowardly thing to do. You made it so hard for me and my family to move on.
"It caused so much unnecessary pain."
A jury didn’t believe a medical condition caused Pillar to black out behind the wheel.
“We all know what’s true and what’s not. It’s pretty obvious so I think he’s just trying to stretch it out as long as he can,” Kristin said.
Defence lawyer Nick Vadasz said Pillar understood the tragic consequences of his actions but he stood by the claim that a medical condition caused the crash.
Mr Vadasz said the evidence was "far from clear" and that a blackout specialist would have been valuable at the trial.
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As if on cue, Pillar's eyes closed and his head rolled back in the dock, prompting Ms Dowdell's son Julian to clap sarcastically in the gallery.
Pillar has taken into custody to return to court for further sentencing submisions on March 8.
