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Otago Daily Times
13 hours ago
- Otago Daily Times
Road-safety advocate took sleeping pills before crash
A Dunedin father and road-safety advocate has admitted crashing his car on the motorway, wiping out 200m of the wire barrier. Mark David Cummings, 49, appeared in the Dunedin District Court last week and pleaded guilty to threatening to kill, posting harmful digital communication, possessing cannabis, two charges of assaulting police, two charges of resisting police, two charges of speaking threateningly and refusing to undergo a compulsory impairment test. In 2019, the defendant's 15-year-old daughter Jayde Amy Cummings was killed instantly when the driver of the ute she was in failed to stop at the intersection of Church Rd West and Huntly Rd, in Outram. The incident resulted in a prolonged road safety campaign by Cummings and he was vindicated by a coroner's report last year. The police summary revealed that on March 22, Cummings was driving his Ford Ranger south on Dunedin's Southern Motorway. He drifted into the metal wire centre barrier and witnesses said he made no attempt to brake. About 200m of the centre barrier was wiped out, and his vehicle became entangled in the wire. While being transported to Dunedin Central Police Station, Cummings was falling asleep. He admitted to officers he had taken 10 sleeping pills and used cannabis before driving. About 8pm Cummings was taken back to his home but 30 minutes later he showed up at his mother's house, acting aggressively, and police were called again. When they arrived, the defendant yelled at them before a struggle ensued between him and two constables. Once police restrained him, he was found to be holding a lighter and a small bag with 0.78g of cannabis. Cummings told one officer that he would remember him, he was going to "get it" and he would "make him pay". Police assisted the defendant to regain his balance before he put his feet on to the couch and jumped back in an attempt to "body slam" the constable into the wall. Back at the police station Cummings continued to be belligerent and attempted to rip two pairs of underwear. Yesterday, the defendant also admitted that on February 9 he posted a threatening message on his Facebook profile which ended with "I will see u soon c...". The next month, he turned up at the victim's place of work, smacked the corner of his desk and said "10 grand on the corner of this desk by 4 o'clock today, or else I am going to break your kneecaps and whatever else I have to. The boys will be here as well". Cummings was remanded on bail and scheduled to appear for sentencing in October. In December 2021, Cummings was sentenced to nine months' intensive supervision after he used a wooden baton to smash a hole in a lawyer's office and damaged the Dunedin City Council building. The outburst was a response to reading a media article that the teen driver who caused his daughter's death had been discharged by the Youth Court. At the time, Judge Evangelos Thomas told Cummings: "Nobody can hold your grief or your rage against you ". , Court reporter
Otago Daily Times
16 hours ago
- Otago Daily Times
Man took sleeping pills before crash
A Dunedin father and road-safety advocate has admitted crashing his car on the motorway, wiping out 200m of the wire barrier. Mark David Cummings, 49, appeared in the Dunedin District Court last week and pleaded guilty to threatening to kill, posting harmful digital communication, possessing cannabis, two charges of assaulting police, two charges of resisting police, two charges of speaking threateningly and refusing to undergo a compulsory impairment test. In 2019, the defendant's 15-year-old daughter Jayde Amy Cummings was killed instantly when the driver of the ute she was in failed to stop at the intersection of Church Rd West and Huntly Rd, in Outram. The incident resulted in a prolonged road safety campaign by Cummings and he was vindicated by a coroner's report last year. The police summary revealed that on March 22, Cummings was driving his Ford Ranger south on Dunedin's Southern Motorway. He drifted into the metal wire centre barrier and witnesses said he made no attempt to brake. About 200m of the centre barrier was wiped out, and his vehicle became entangled in the wire. While being transported to Dunedin Central Police Station, Cummings was falling asleep. He admitted to officers he had taken 10 sleeping pills and used cannabis before driving. About 8pm Cummings was taken back to his home but 30 minutes later he showed up at his mother's house, acting aggressively, and police were called again. When they arrived, the defendant yelled at them before a struggle ensued between him and two constables. Once police restrained him, he was found to be holding a lighter and a small bag with 0.78g of cannabis. Cummings told one officer that he would remember him, he was going to "get it" and he would "make him pay". Police assisted the defendant to regain his balance before he put his feet on to the couch and jumped back in an attempt to "body slam" the constable into the wall. Back at the police station Cummings continued to be belligerent and attempted to rip two pairs of underwear. Yesterday, the defendant also admitted that on February 9 he posted a threatening message on his Facebook profile which ended with "I will see u soon c...". The next month, he turned up at the victim's place of work, smacked the corner of his desk and said "10 grand on the corner of this desk by 4 o'clock today, or else I am going to break your kneecaps and whatever else I have to. The boys will be here as well". Cummings was remanded on bail and scheduled to appear for sentencing in October. In December 2021, Cummings was sentenced to nine months' intensive supervision after he used a wooden baton to smash a hole in a lawyer's office and damaged the Dunedin City Council building. The outburst was a response to reading a media article that the teen driver who caused his daughter's death had been discharged by the Youth Court. At the time, Judge Evangelos Thomas told Cummings: "Nobody can hold your grief or your rage against you ". , Court reporter
