KEY POINTS:
The agony behind the road toll was brought home yesterday when the Muir family of Wanganui buried their father, 11 months after the accident which seriously injured him and killed their mother.
The teen who caused the accident and is now serving a prison term for it, could face further charges as a result of Ian Muir's death.
Mr Muir and his wife Dawn were driving home along Somme Parade in Wanganui on a quiet Saturday afternoon on June 9 last year when they were hit by 17-year-old Chad Ian McRae-Tweeddale, coming the other way in his Ford Fairmont.
He was driving at high speed, lost control and hit the Muirs' car, catapulting it into the air and off the road.
McRae-Tweeddale and his still-unknown male passenger ran off on foot without stopping to help or check whether anyone had been hurt.
Detective Craig Gorringe told the Wanganui Chronicle it was one of the most devastating accidents he had ever attended.
Mrs Muir died hours later.
Ian Muir died last Saturday after a long and painful battle to overcome his injuries at the Burwood Spinal Unit, then the Masonic Court Home in Wanganui.
McRae-Tweeddale pleaded guilty to a charge of reckless driving causing death and reckless driving causing injury. In November, he was jailed for two years.
Mr Gorringe said because Mr Muir had died within a year of the horrific crash, police were now seeking a legal opinion on whether McRae-Tweeddale could be charged again.
"I will be talking with the family this week," he said.
At Mr Muir's funeral yesterday, his daughter Jan Bell said the past year had been a huge and painful struggle for her dad.
- NZPA
