William Swale will not be re-charged over Daylesford car crash, Victoria prosecutors say

Victoria prosecutors say they will not reinstate charges against Daylesford crash driver William Swale after the court threw out the case in September.

Mr Swale, who has type 1 diabetes, was suffering a medical crisis when he crashed into patrons outside a Victorian pub last November, killing five people.

A judge dismissed all charges relating to the crash after Mr Swale’s lawyers successfully argued that his hypoglycaemic attack was so bad he was unable to control his movements.

The Office of the Prosecutor (OPP) said it would “carefully consider” the decision and had the option of taking the case back to court using the legal tactic known as a direct indictment.

On Friday, the OPP said that option was now off the table.

“Following review of the Crown case, it was decided not to file a direct indictment,” a spokesman said.

“This decision was communicated and explained to the victims and their families. “We understand that this is not the outcome they were hoping for and acknowledge that they are very affected by this incident.”

Experts cannot rule out serious medical events

Mr Swale was facing charges of culpable driving causing death, negligently causing injury and careless conduct endangering life.

Prosecutors argued he was aware of the risks of getting behind the wheel while experiencing low blood sugar levels.

But two medical experts on the ward said they could not rule out that Mr Swale had suffered a severe hypoglycaemic episode before getting into the car half an hour before the crash.

“The implication of this evidence was that it was possible that Mr Swale was so impaired that he was unable to act consciously during the relevant period,” an OPP spokesman said.

In addition to father and son Vivek and Vihaan Bhatia, 44-year-old Pratibha Sharma, her nine-year-old daughter Anvi and Sharma’s husband, 30-year-old Jatin Kumar, also died in the accident.

Outside the court in September, Mr Swale’s lawyer expressed his “deepest condolences” to the families on his client’s behalf.

At the time, Vivek and Vihaan Bhatia’s father and grandfather, Ashok Bhatia, said he felt “very, very sad” about the legal outcome.

“Five lives have no value,” he said.