Jeremy Anthony Lee, 43, appeared in the Dunedin District Court yesterday and admitted charges of dangerous driving and drug-impaired driving causing death.
Lee was working the night shift as a truck driver and was seen swerving and crossing the centre line during his journey from Christchurch.
He crossed the centre line while driving over Merrys Stream bridge, near Waimate, and collided with the victim, Alan George Weir, of Waimate, who was on his way to work at 6am on September 11.
The victim’s car became lodged under the truck — and the trailer unit on the truck Lee was driving went up in flames.
Lee and another truck driver, who stopped to help, pulled Mr Weir from his car.
CPR was administered, but Mr Weir died at the scene.
Lee was airlifted to Dunedin Hospital and a blood sample revealed 90 nanograms of methamphetamine per millilitre of blood in his system — the high-risk level is 50ng.
Speaking to the Otago Daily Times yesterday, the victim’s wife, Kerri Weir, said she had mixed emotions about the defendant finally admitting his wrong-doing.
"I’m ... kind of relieved that it’s going to be over soon — sad that we’re having to actually go through any of this because it should never have happened in the first place," Mrs Weir said.
She did not think the court process would ever bring her closure but felt closer to getting the justice her husband deserved, she said.
"He was a hardworking husband and dad to his girls and a great granddad to his grandkids.
"And he’s a big loss," she said.
"I’ve got grandkids staying here at the moment and they say, ‘It’s just not the same without Granddad here."’
"What if he’d waited two more minutes, or if he’d been two minutes earlier?
"But it could have been another family, or it could have been the whole family in the car, or it could have been, you know, so much worse and with someone else," she said.
"We considered Alan our hero that day because he stopped a maniac on the road even though he didn’t do it intentionally."
But she and her family still felt angry, Mrs Weir said.
"Accidents are accidents, but if it’s drug-related and stuff like that, it just seems so nonsensical," she said.
"He was going to work like he had for 16 and a-half years.
"He kissed me goodbye in the morning."
Her husband was a maintenance carpenter at the meatworks in Pareora but had just turned 65 at the time of his death and was looking forward to his retirement.
They had been planning their first overseas trip together and would have celebrated their 40th wedding anniversary in February.
"We all loved him a lot ... he was a sweet guy and he had a very cheeky grin.
"And everyone loved his very cheeky grin," she said.
Lee was remanded on bail and will be sentenced in October — more than a year after the crash.
