Northland man who was imprisoned after his partner fell off car roof while he was driving, and died, will finish the remainder of his sentence at home.
Northland man sentenced to prison after partner dies in fall from car roof
8 Mar, 2021 04:00 PM
3 minutes to read
The court accepted Takimoana made the unfortunate choice of driving away. Photo / File
Peter de Graaf is a reporter for the Northern Advocatepeter.degraaf@northernadvocate.co.nznorthernadvocat
A Northland man has been jailed for just over two years after his partner died when she fell off the roof of his car as she was trying to stop him driving.
Phillip Lance Takimoana, 42, of Ōhaeawai, was sentenced in the Kaikohe District Court last month on a charge of dangerous driving causing the death of his partner, kindergarten teacher Trudi Ruffiner.
STUFF
The long time it takes for coroners to deliver reports into sudden deaths has been called a national scandal by one grieving wife.
Grieving families are having to wait on a knife-edge for years, as the time coroners take to investigate sudden deaths has ballooned 25 per cent in a year. New Zealand-wide, in the 12 months ending October 31, 2020, it took an average of 458 days for coroners to close their investigations, up from 366 days the year prior.
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Grieving families wait an average of 458 days after a sudden death for a coroner to close their investigation. (File photo) But there are also large disparities between coronial service regions, with Whangārei families waiting an average of 624 days for a case to close – more than twice as long as the fastest area, Rotorua, according to figures provided by the Ministry of Justice under the Official Information Act.