$7,000 fine and five-year driving ban for death through negligent driving

77-year old Willie Chan York Jen pleaded guilty to causing the death of pedestrian Mr. Mohamed Ibrahim Yusoff, at the junction of Lorong 2 and Lorong 6 Toa Payoh, on the 21^st of December last year.

According to The Straits Times, the court heard that Chan had a clean driving record for 58 years. The retiree was driving home along Lorong 2 Toa Payoh when he stopped at the traffic lights at the junction of Lorong 6. When the light turned in his favour, he drove straight without noticing Mr. Ibrahim walking along the Lorong 6 pedestrian crossing.

Mr. Ibrahim, who suffered from dementia, had proceeded to walk across despite the flashing red man. He was almost at the centre divider when he was struck by Chan's car. Mr. Ibrahim suffered head injuries, started bleeding from the mouth and became short of breath, before losing consciousness. He was conveyed to the hospital where he was pronounced dead four hours later.

In a separate fatal accident, Norizah Samad admitted to running over a motorcyclist after failing to check her blind spot while changing lanes along Bedok North Street 3 on the 29^th of October last year.

Norizah was driving with her two children and mother when she turned left out of a car park into Bedok North Street 3. She was driving along the left lane of the one-way, two-lane road when she tried to negotiate a right bend.

She checked her mirrors as she tried to move into the right lane. Despite using her turn signals, she failed to properly check her blind spot and did not notice a scooter in the right lane beside her car. Norizah's car piled onto the scooter, throwing 32-year old Mr. Muhammad Shaheen Abdullah off his vehicle and underneath her car. Mr. Shaheen collapsed en route to hospital and was pronounced dead at about 7:20pm.

The maximum penalty for causing death through a negligent act is two years' imprisonment and a fine.