A disqualified driver has been spared jail for taking over the wheel of a truck after becoming disgusted by his employee's driving and her attempt to set his beard alight.
In October 2012, Errol David Cain was given a three-month suspended jail sentence, disqualified from driving for 10 months and put on a two-year good behaviour bond.
The now 71-year-old truckie had been found guilty in the South Australian District Court of an aggravated count of driving without due care over a February 2010 fatal crash in the Adelaide Hills.
His truck hit and shunted a car 140 metres along the South Eastern Freeway, resulting in the death of the 43-year-old driver.
Linda Carter was stopped in the emergency lane after getting a flat tyre, and was waiting for help to arrive.
Cain admitted to breaching his bond by driving while disqualified in February last year.
Judge Michael Boylan suspended a two-week jail term on Friday, placed him on a one-year good behaviour bond and disqualified him from driving for three months.
Cain testified he had been accompanying a female employee who was driving the truck to collect a potato load.
He became concerned by her driving but she ignored his requests to slow down and take better control and they exchanged words.
"She said she was the driver and that was it," he said.
"She tried to set my beard alight with a cigarette lighter."
The situation worsened, he told her enough was enough, and she stopped the truck, saying she would not drive any further.
Cain said his mobile phone had no coverage so he would not call for a replacement driver.
Feeling disgusted and agitated, he said he made the rash decision to take over the driving for about 15km.
Judge Boylan said Cain's decision to drive while disqualified was deliberate, acknowledging he was in a temper because of his employee's behaviour and driving.
He noted that until the 2010 crash, Cain had led a blameless life and had an unblemished driving record.
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