Woman who was high on meth when she hit and killed a mother-of-three says she should avoid jail because it would affect her baby boy

  • Samantha Farrer asked the District Court in Adelaide to avoid jail time
  • She said this week that it could ruin her relationship with her toddler son
  • Farrer hit and killed Kathleen Heraghty, 48, with her car in December 2013 
  • She has compared her case to that of drug trafficker Soraya Constant

A woman who was high on methamphetamines when she hit and killed a mother-of-three with her car claims that serving time in prison could sever her relationship with her toddler son.

Counsel for Samantha Magdaleine Farrer asked the District Court of South Australia in Adelaide on Wednesday to allow the 39-year-old to go home to her 15-month-old son, according to The Advertiser.

Farrer, who is the former girlfriend of siege gunman Rodney Clavell, was found guilty in May of causing the death of Kathleen Heraghty, 48, as she rode her bicycle in December 2013.

Samantha Magdaleine Farrer (pictured), who was high on ice when she hit and killed mother-of-three Kathleen Heraghty near Adelaide in 2013, says serving jail time could ruin her relationship with her son

Her counsel asked the court to compare Farrer's case to that of drug trafficker Soraya Constant (pictured), who was granted bail before she went into labour with her second child so she wouldn't be separated from her children

Farrer's counsel, Gilbert Aitken, argued that the incident was 'a tragic accident with terrible, shocking consequences' but that his client shouldn't face jail time because it was not intentional.

Mr Aitken asked the court to compare Farrer's case to that of Soraya Constant, who pleaded guilty to importing pseudoephedrine to make amphetamine, but was granted bail before she went into labour with her second child so she wouldn't be separated from her children, according to The Advertiser.

Constant, 30, was 29 weeks pregnant when she was sent to jail in April and also had a toddler daughter.

Her jail sentence for drug trafficking was overturned by the Court of Criminal Appeal.

Farrer was found guilty in May of causing the death of Kathleen Heraghty (pictured), 48, as she rode her bicycle in December 2013

Farrer was also found guilty of leaving the scene of the accident (pictured)

South Australian prisons do not have the appropriate facilities for children to stay with their mothers while they serve their time, Mr Aitken said.

'[Experts] make it quite plain that the effect of this kind of separation are, essentially, far too great,' he said.

'It can lead to beliefs others are unreliable and can't be trusted ... (Farrer's son) is at an age and a stage where he wouldn't understand the reason his mother had been removed.'

South Australian prisons do not have the appropriate facilities for children to stay with their mothers while they serve their time, Farrer's counsel said

'The resentment that would cause could well last the rest of his life.' 

The family of Ms Heraghty said last month that they are 'drenched in pain' after her death.

Farrer was granted a bail continuation and will return to the court in two weeks for sentencing. 

Farrer (pictured) was granted a bail continuation and will return to the court in two weeks for sentencing

 

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