A 14-year-old Melbourne girl who had 109 serious charges dropped after allegedly stealing multiple cars and using one to mow down a cyclist has faced a children's court again just two weeks later. The teenager had all her charges dismissed after her lawyer foreshadowed the use of the legal principle doli incapax, which presumes children aged 10 to 14 are too young to understand the seriousness of their offending.
News.com.au can exclusively reveal that last Thursday she appeared before a magistrate on new charges. The young girl, who cannot be identified due to her age, is now facing three counts of aggravated burglary, two counts of theft of a motor vehicle, and an unlicensed driving charge. A family member, also unidentified, will face a children's court later this week on 58 charges, including aggravated burglary, resisting an emergency worker, burglary, theft of a motor vehicle, and unlawful assault.
Several individuals with close ties to the teenagers spoke to news.com.au about their alleged behaviour over several years. One woman said her sister was with the teen during the majority of her alleged offending over a two-and-a-half-month crime spree that resulted in 109 charges. Those charges included driving a vehicle recklessly towards a victim, placing that person in danger of death.
The woman, speaking anonymously, said the teenager appeared to enjoy the attention from her alleged offending, which included claims that she Googled 'Where do Jews live' and 'How long is the sentence for running someone over' within three minutes of allegedly striking the cyclist on Beach Road in Brighton. 'When she got out of youth detention, she did think it was funny all the posts being made about her on social media,' the woman said.
Another woman, also speaking anonymously, said her son attended the same primary school as the girls and recalled them trying to bully his best friend. 'When they were reprimanded by teachers, it just amused them. Their father was stressed out of his wits; he mentioned he just doesn't know how to help them,' she said. 'Neither of them cared and both of them fed off each other.'
The children's court earlier this month heard that the teen had turned 14 while in custody and had been detained for 34 days. When her lawyer hinted at presenting a doli incapax argument, the magistrate said it was the 'obvious' choice. A date to hear arguments was set for May 18, but prosecutors dropped the charges instead. The case highlights the ongoing use of doli incapax in Victoria, with similar instances involving teens having charges struck out in recent years.
