British tourist pleads guilty to killing a man while drunk driving an e-scooter in Australia
WELLINGTON, New Zealand — An English tourist who hit and killed a man while riding an e-scooter in Australia pleaded guilty on Monday to a charge of dangerous driving causing death while under the influence of alcohol.
Alicia Kemp, 25, admitted the charge during a hearing at the Western Australia Magistrate's Court, officials told The Associated Press. Kemp was riding an e-scooter with a passenger on board in the city of Perth on May 31 when she hit a 51-year-old man, Australian news outlets reported.
Thanh Phan hit his head on the pavement and later died in a hospital. Kemp and the scooter's passenger received minor injuries.
Kemp was visiting Western Australia state from Britain on a working holiday visa, according to the Australian Broadcasting Corp. Investigators estimated she was driving at about the maximum speed of a rental e-scooter, 20 to 25 km/h (12 to 16 m.p.h), when she crashed into Phan, the court was told at an earlier hearing.
A charge of causing harm to the passenger was dropped when Kemp made the appearance via video link from jail on Monday. She was earlier refused bail.
Mike Tudori, Kemp's lawyer, told reporters outside the court that his client was 'nervous and worried' as 'a young foreign national girl' in an Australian jail.
'She's obviously done something stupid at the time,' he said, according to Australian Associated Press. 'She obviously wasn't thinking, level-headed and there's consequences, and she just wants to get on with her life.'
Phan's family described him as a 'beloved husband, father of two, brother and dear friend,' according to the AAP.
Kemp will remain in custody until her next court appearance on Oct. 31, when a sentencing date will be set. The charge carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.
Officials in Perth suspended e-scooter rental in the city after Phan's death, which was the fifth involving e-vehicles in the state in 2025. The state's government also launched an inquiry into the vehicles.
Melbourne, in Victoria state, was in 2024 the first Australian city to ban e-scooter hire. The move echoed prohibitions in some other cities worldwide, including Paris, France, where a ban was overwhelmingly approved in April 2023.
Charlotte Graham-mclay, The Associated Press
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Toronto Star
40 minutes ago
- Toronto Star
Police say 3 people were fatally shot at a Target in Austin, Texas, and a suspect has been detained
AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — A gunman opened fire Monday in a Target store parking lot in the Texas capital, killing at least three people, then stole two cars during a getaway that ended with police using a Taser to detain him on the other side of the city, authorities said. Austin Police Chief Lisa Davis said the suspect is a man in his 30s with 'a mental health history.'
Toronto Star
an hour ago
- Toronto Star
Sudan's Rapid Support Forces kill 40 people in North Darfur displacement camp attack
CAIRO (AP) — Sudan's paramilitary Rapid Support Forces launched attacks Monday in a famine-stricken displacement camp outside of el-Fasher, the capital of North Darfur province, killing 40 people, local rights groups said. The Emergency Response Rooms group working at the Abu Shouk displacement camp said in a statement on Facebook that the RSF — which is at war with the Sudanese military — raided parts of the camp targeting citizens inside their homes. The community activist group, which provides assistance across Sudan, said at least 19 people were also injured.
Winnipeg Free Press
an hour ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
Sudan's Rapid Support Forces kill 40 people in North Darfur displacement camp attack
CAIRO (AP) — Sudan's paramilitary Rapid Support Forces launched attacks Monday in a famine-stricken displacement camp outside of el-Fasher, the capital of North Darfur province, killing 40 people, local rights groups said. The Emergency Response Rooms group working at the Abu Shouk displacement camp said in a statement on Facebook that the RSF — which is at war with the Sudanese military — raided parts of the camp targeting citizens inside their homes. The community activist group, which provides assistance across Sudan, said at least 19 people were also injured. The Abu Shouk displacement camp outside of el-Fasher, which houses around 450,000 displaced people, has been repeatedly attacked over the course of the war. The Sudanese military has control over el-Fasher despite frequent strikes by the RSF. Meanwhile, the Resistance Committees in el-Fasher confirmed the attacks, saying on Facebook that the scene 'reflected the extent of the horrific violations committed against innocent, defenseless people.' The Resistance Committees are a group of local citizens from the community that includes human rights activists. The civil war in Sudan erupted in April 2023 in the capital Khartoum before spreading across the country following simmering tensions between the RSF and the army. The fighting has killed over 40,000 people, displaced as many as 12 million and pushed many to the brink of famine. The Abu Shouk camp is one of two camps with strong famine conditions, according to humanitarians. The Sudanese army said it clashed with RSF fighters on Monday in el-Fasher beginning at around 6 a.m. and ending in the afternoon. It claimed it defeated the paramilitary group, according to its posts on social media. 'Our forces repelled a large-scale attack from several axes by the terrorist militia and inflicted heavy losses on the enemy in lives and equipment, as more than 16 combat vehicles were destroyed and burned and 34 vehicles, including armored cars, were captured,' the army claimed in a statement. There was no mention of the fight on the RSF's Telegram channel. Darfur Gov. Mini Arko Minawi said on Facebook that el-Fasher 'triumphed over those who betrayed their land' in an apparent reference to the RSF in Monday's fight. Meanwhile, in North Kordofan province the RSF has been accused of displacing over 3,000 families from 66 villages due to fighting since early August, according to the Sudan Doctors Network. The group also said the RSF looted the properties of those people and stole their money and livestock. Those displaced ended up arriving at Khartoum and White Nile provinces last week.
