A grieving mother says she struggles to live on without her son who died after he was thrown from the back of a ute on Boxing Day last year.
Rebecca Hollows told Judge Denise Clark in the Hamilton District Court today she was now numb to the world around her and used anti-depressants after the death of her 18-year-old son, Ra Ngaru Smith.
"Ra was my life, he was my best friend, the centre of my world. It was always the two of us and his 78-year-old nan. The day he died so too did most of me. I'm feeling numb to the world around me ... for those that understand there's no explanation required. For those that don't understand there's no explanation possible."
Ms Hollows was reading her victim impact statement to Judge Clark during the sentencing of Lesah Chase, now of Rotorua, who earlier admitted charges of careless driving causing death and driving without an appropriate driver's licence after she lost control of the ute she was driving along Wainui Rd and plunged down a 5m bank.
Chase has pleaded not guilty to a charge of making a false statement to police for which she will reappear in court next month.