Outrage has erupted in Melbourne after a court allowed a woman who killed 11-year-old schoolboy Jack Davey to walk free with only a $2,000 fine and a two-year driving ban.
The driver, 41-year-old Shaymaa Oun Ghazi Zuhaira, was convicted of careless driving, an offence carrying a maximum penalty of $2,400. The incident occurred on October 29, 2024, when Zuhaira, pulling out of a parallel park outside Auburn South Primary School, lost control of her SUV. The vehicle mounted the curb, crashed through the school fence, and struck five children. Jack was killed instantly, while three others were left seriously injured.
The grieving Davey family attended Melbourne Magistrates Court, where they described how the reduced charge had compounded their suffering. “No sentence can ever bring back Jack,” they said.
Magistrate Vincenzo Caltabiano acknowledged the tragedy but ruled that the accident was caused when Zuhaira pressed the accelerator instead of the brake. He added: “This sentence cannot in any way reflect the value of Jack’s life.”
