The mother of a 15-year-old hit-and-run victim has set up a petition demanding the home detention and community service sentence received by the woman who hit him is appealed.
A petition titled 'Crown to appeal the sentence of the girl that killed our son in a hit and run,' set up by Charlene Kraatskow on Change.org, has received 10,000 signatures in less than 6 hours.
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Ms Kraatskow told Newshub the petition was about "getting justice for my son".
On Friday, 19-year-old Rouxle Le Roux was sentenced to 11 months home detention and 250 hours community service after being charged for dangerous driving causing death.
In May, Le Roux, a learner driver who had consumed alcohol and cannabis earlier, hit Nathan Kraatskow with her car at the intersection of Oteha Valley Rd and the northern motorway onramp in Albany before driving off.
"When they said she left the scene, and just thinking of him being there by himself," Ms Kraatskow told Newshub on Friday.
"Our 15 year-old son Nathan was killed in a hit-and-run and the 19-year-old girl that killed him while under the influence of drugs and alcohol only got 11 months home detention," the petition says.
"What about my son, where is the justice here."
It took Le Roux 16 hours to come forward to police and since the crash happened she has posted images online which appear to make light of the situation.
One shows the now convicted criminal at a bus stop with the hashtag "Canthurtemifigotnone". Another, now deleted post, features Le Roux dress in an orange convict outfit for Halloween with the caption "hide ya kids".
Crown prosecutor Robin McCoubrey said Le Roux's social media postings "caused great upset and they were drawn to the attention of the family".
"They do sit uneasily with the submission of remorse to post in that way and that's really the reason why they're relevant to the sentencing," he said at the Auckland District Court.
Le Roux's lawyer, Belinda Sellars QC, said Le Roux suffered "acute reaction after this accident that resulted in her hospitalisation and she's continued to have counselling".
"In respect of the social media postings, she has felt, and continues to feel, intense pressure as a result of this case.
"She remains very sorry and her psychologist, her counsellors... have all assessed her as being remorseful."
One comment on the petition said while accidents can happen "when you deny what you did and make fun of someone you've killed you deserve no sympathy and should be locked away".
But Judge Nicola Matthers said she believed Le Roux was remorseful for her crime and took into account her "troubled childhood" and "various mental disorders requiring treatment" when sentencing her.
"Everyday you wake up and you're hoping it's a nightmare, and then you realise it's not," said Ms Kraatskow.
A second petition set up by another woman on Friday has received over 8000 signatures and also calls for the Crown to appeal the sentence.
Newshub.
