Analiza Sagang Curtis: 18 months prison for Filipino national after hit and run death of Jamie Murray

The horrific last moments of a Mandurah hit-and-run victim who was dragged 90 metres, lodged under a car, before the “callous” driver who left him to die, reversed to dislodge his broken body, were revealed in court last week. Analiza Sagang Curtis appeared at the WA District Court on Friday for sentencing after popular local Jamie Murray died last year. Murray’s family and friends attended court wearing Justice for Jamie shirts to hear details of their loved one’s last moments. The court heard that Mr Murray was intoxicated when an Uber driver dropped him home to Creery Street in Mandurah just before 4am on March 1 last year. About an hour later, Curtis, who was a neighbour, got into her Kia Rio to drive her husband to work. Tragically, Mr Murray, who was in the middle of the road, became stuck under the Kia when Curtis ran him over. The 38-year-old continued driving for 90 metres with Mr Murray lodged under the car, before stopping and reversing on Boundary Road, dislodging his body. John Edullantes, Curtis’ husband, got out of the car to investigate the strange sounds and told her there was a person. Curtis drove the pair home, then left again minutes later to take her husband to work. Mr Murray, a 45-year-old father of two, was found by a delivery driver at 5am with injuries to his head and arm. Police and paramedics were called and worked on Mr Murray for some time, but he was declared dead at the hospital. Mr Edullantes sent Curtis a screenshot of a police release about the crash that stated Mr Murray had died. Curtis, who was described as a hard-working aged care employee, attended a wedding later that day. Mr Murray was a well-known and popular member of the Mandurah community, and there was a massive outpouring of grief following his death. He was employed at the Mandurah Performing Arts Centre for two decades and was remembered as a gentle, well-liked and devoted father. It was when police matched debris left near Mr Murray’s body to Curtis’ Kia that she was arrested. Following the arrest, Curtis lied to the police and said her husband was driving. Mr Edullantes was charged on May 6 with being in control of a motor vehicle when in the proximity of a person harmed, and giving false information to WA Police, but these charges were dropped. Curtis was charged with being a driver who fails to stop and ensure assistance is received after an incident occasioning death, District Court Judge Laura Christian acknowledged a victim impact statement from Mr Murray’s mother, Robyn Murray, about the ongoing impact on her of thinking about her son having been left lying on the road, hurt and bleeding, and him dying alone. Last year, Ms Murray told the Times she wished the couple, who lived on the same street as her son, who was alive for nine minutes after he was injured, had called for help. “He might still be here because he was alive,” Ms Murray said. Judge Christian sentenced Curtis, a Filipino national, to 18 months in prison even though she’s heavily pregnant and due to give birth in May. “The child you are carrying was conceived after you were charged in relation to this incident and after you had pleaded guilty in Magistrates Court,” Judge Christian said. “One way or another, the fact that you are currently pregnant and due to give birth shortly is a result of a choice you made, at some point. “For pregnancy and impending birth, to provide a reason an offender should not be sentenced to a term of immediate imprisonment would provide an incentive to female offenders to get pregnant before sentencing.” Judge Christian said there was a “strong need” to send a message to drivers that if they are involved in an incident where someone is injured or dies, they must remain there until the victim has received help. Curtis was described as “callous” and motivated by her own interests. “You knew you had hit a person from what your husband had told you. In those circumstances, your failure to stop and render or call for assistance was callous in the sense that you had no regard for whether the person you hit was alive or dead,” Judge Christian said. “You left him on the road in a position such that he was vulnerable to being struck by other drivers. “I’m satisfied your failure to stop and render assistance was motivated by your own interests. Clearly, you feared you would be held accountable for the incident and were trying to avoid responsibility. “While I accept that you may have panicked initially, I do not accept that panic is capable of explaining your subsequent actions. “After you realised you had hit a person, you immediately returned home… You only remained there for a few minutes before proceeding to drive your husband to work. “Clearly, within minutes of the incident occurring, you were not so panicked as to be unable to go about your own business. “Further, your decision to lie to the police about who was driving was calculated. It was not made on the spur of the moment.” Curtis was suspended from driving for two years and must serve at least nine months before being eligible for parole.