Home | Databases | WorldLII | Search | Feedback High Court of Kiribati

Republic v Rabi [2022] KIHC 30; Criminal Case 10 of 2021 (6 June 2022)

SENTENCE

1. The initial information was filed by the Attorney General’s office on 24 March 2021 while the first mention of the case was heard on 7 April 2022 more than a year after the charge was filed. This is due to the huge number of cases including backlog cases in the High Court with only the Chief Justice as the full time Judge residing in the country in 2021. It is now a matter of urgency that more Judges are appointed to the High Court to ease the onerous load even for 2 Judges and the Commissioner, who is not full time in the role.
   
2. I will now proceed to sentencing you, Teeta Rabi. You have pleaded guilty to the charge produced below and was convicted as charged accordingly on 19 April 2022;

Charge:

Careless driving causing death contrary to section 35(1) of the Traffic Act 2017.

Particulars of offence:

“Teeta Rabi, on the 08 March 2019, at Bairiki side on Dai Nippon Causeway, South Tarawa, in the Republic of Kiribati, caused the death of a man namely Teuriaki Kaibeau by driving a motorbike on the road carelessly.”

3. You have admitted the following summary of facts;

“Teeta Rabi was initially charged with dangerous driving causing death, but then the charge was amended to careless driving causing death contrary to section 35(1) of the Traffic Act 2017.

On the 19 September 2020 around 4:00am and 5:00am at the Bairiki side on the Dai Nippon Causeway, a road accident happened between two motorbikes that ran in different directions. The unregistered motorbike, described as a SENKE BRAND red colour was ridden by the accused, one Teeta Rabi from Betio towards Bairiki and upon reaching a location near to Bairiki side the motorbike then collided with one Teuriaki’s motorbike registration number 7574 that ran westerly to Betio. With a speed of not more than 60 kilometers per hour, the accused overtook the car in front of him without taking due care and attention to the oncoming motorbike of the victim one Teuriaki coming from Bairiki side. After overtaking the saloon, the accused suddenly crashed the victim’s motorbike which was riding from Bairiki side. After the collision, both the prisoner and the victim fell on the road. The prisoner was unconscious and was assisted by his companions who rode behind him. The victim sustained serious injuries with massive blood from the back of his head and was taken to the Betio Hospital. The prisoner resumed consciousness while in prison and was interrogated later, however the victim was medically examined and pronounced dead after the incident.”

4. Teeta Rabi, the sentence I impose must denounce your offending, deter you and others from the same offending and hold you responsible and accountable for the careless driving you have done causing the death of the victim. The sentence should also to the extent that it can, rehabilitate you to be a more responsible member of your society.
   
5. Counsels agreed that you were not speeding nor consuming alcohol during the incident which Mr Rubetaake for the convict submitted as an ‘unfortunate incident’. I disagree with Mr Rubetaake as you have accepted that you have carelessly rode your motorbike and crashing into the victim’s motorbike taking his life. It was not an unfortunate incident but one which you have not taken due care and attention and without taking reasonable consideration for other persons using the road. It was also agreed by counsels that your driving license was expired during the incident meaning you were not allowed to drive any vehicle at all.
   
6. Public Prosecutor, Mr Auatabu, submitted that the offence of careless driving causing death is one of the common traffic offences and that the court should be stricter to the perpetrators to deter them and all drivers from committing this serious offence and to ensure that our roads are safe for everyone. He prayed for a custodial sentence.
   
7. The aggravating factors for your offending include the following;
   • Your offending has caused the death of the victim, Teuriaki Kaibeau, who after the crash, sustained severe injuries to the back of his head with heavy blood loss. He was pronounced death at the hospital.
   • Driving with no valid driving license is aggravating the nature of your offending given that you should not drive any vehicle on the public road. Had you complied with the Traffic Act in not driving because of your expired warrant, you would not have appeared today.
     
8. The maximum penalty for the offence of careless driving causing death is a term of imprisonment of 5 years, a fine of $2000, or both.
   
9. I take into account the approach taken by the Court of Appeal in how sentencing should be done in an offence of careless driving causing death. In Rereintetaake Kanooa v The Republic [2014] KICA 3, the Court of Appeal set out that,
   

“A custodial sentence was inevitable and the task of the sentencing judge was to assess the degree of the appellant's carelessness leading to the death of the victim...”

10. The Court of Appeal in the Kanooa case agreed with Chief Justice Muria that the offending of careless driving causing death should have a sentence range of 1 to 3 years. The difference in the Kanooa case with your case, Teeta Rabi, is the speeding over the speed limit by the convict in the Kanooa case.
    
11. Your offending is a less serious one than the Kanooa case and in light of the Court of Appeal decision, I take 12 months as the appropriate starting point. I increase it to 24 months in light of the two aggravating factors deliberated earlier in which the victim’s life was taken and driving without a valid driving license causing the death of the victim when you crashed into his motorbike.
    
12. The only mitigating factors that I accept in your favour, Teeta Rabi, are as follows;
    • No previous conviction which tells a good story about your past being a law-abiding citizen.
    • Early guilty plea to the charge should be significantly considered in terms of your sentence as it shows remorse in what you have done. I agree with your lawyer, Mr Rubetaake, that you are remorseful and take full responsibility of your actions.
      
13. I am mindful of your personal circumstances as submitted by your counsel, Mr Rubetaake, even though I do not accept that they are mitigating factors in your offending.
    
14. For these mitigating factors, I reduce your sentence by 8 months.
    
15. Teeta Rabi, I sentence you to 16 months imprisonment.
    
16. Your lawyer, Mr Rubetaake, prayed for a suspended sentence as opposed to Mr Auatabu’s proposal. The severity of the nature of your offending outweighs the mitigating factors including your personal circumstances. Additionally, there was never a time you approached the victim’s family to reconcile or apologise. I reject your counsel’s submission for a suspended sentence.
    
17. Finally, it is also obligatory in light of section 56(3) of the Traffic Act to disqualify you from holding a driver’s license given that this is a serious traffic offence. You are disqualified from holding a driver’s license for two years after you serve your custodial sentence.
    
18. Teeta Rabi, you should serve a custodial sentence of 16 months from today and disqualified from holding a driver’s license for two years to be effective after serving your sentence.
    

__________________________
The Hon. Abuera Uruaaba,
Commissioner of the High Court