Hours of dangerous driving led to the rollover crash that claimed the life of 16-year-old Bailey Seabourne, a Tasmanian coroner has found.
Coroner Leigh Mackey said P1 licence holder Seth Brown was driving around Devonport “in a foolhardy and reckless manner” before the fatal crash on May 9, 2022, at Wesley Vale.
“At times he was speeding, performing burnouts and drifting in suburban streets and around public playgrounds and carparks,” Coroner Mackey said.
The dangerous joyride ended in tragedy when Brown, with four passengers in his 1995 Nissan Navara – three more than allowed on his provisional licence – tried to drift around a bend at over 102km/h.
The corner on Mill Road had a 65km/h advisory speed limit.
Despite the group stopping three times before the crash, none of the passengers chose to get out, even as Brown kept driving erratically.
“The manner of his driving posed a significant risk to himself, those present in his vehicle as well as to the public generally,” the coroner noted.
One witness reported seeing the ute travelling “quickly, over the speed limit” just before the crash and thought “something bad was going to happen”.
When Brown attempted to drift around the bend near the Devonport Airport turnoff, the vehicle’s rear tyre caught the gravel verge, causing him to lose control.
The ute flipped multiple times, ejecting Seabourne, who was not wearing a seatbelt, onto the road. Investigators later found his seatbelt was likely jammed and unusable due to being twisted in the buckle.
Brown suffered serious head and spinal injuries, while the three other passengers had a range of injuries, from minor cuts to fractures and spinal trauma.
“The decision making of Brown as driver of the vehicle and of his passengers who remained when they were aware of the risks he was taking with his driving, is indicative of a lack of common sense and maturity of those present and endorses the sense behind the P1 restriction for peer passengers,” the coroner stated.
The investigation ruled out any role of mechanical issues, road conditions, weather or drugs and alcohol.
Following the incident, Brown pleaded guilty to causing death by dangerous driving and was, in June 2024, sentenced to two years and six months in prison.
He will become eligible for parole this September and remain disqualified from driving until June 2027.
