A driver who was using his phone before he hit and killed a teenager on an e-scooter near Newcastle has been sentenced to a maximum of five years in jail.

Jaycob Gemza, 21, was driving a ute when he struck 14-year-old Bryson Dimovski at Warners Bay on July 28, 2023.

Newcastle District Court heard Gemza’s car drifted about one metre into the fog lane, hitting the teenager.

The teenager was propelled onto the bonnet, hitting the windscreen before being thrown down an embankment.   

Gemza pleaded guilty to dangerous driving occasioning death and failing to stop and assist after vehicle impact causing death.

The court heard he stopped at the scene for a couple of minutes and looked around on foot before leaving, but didn’t call Triple Zero (000).

Judge Paul Marr said Gezma concealed his car in a back street before calling his girlfriend for a lift because he thought he was over the alcohol limit.  

“At all times he didn’t know if a person was alive or dead,” Judge Marr said.

The court heard Gemza called police several hours later after being alerted to a post on social media about a missing boy.

Before handing down his sentence, Judge Marr noted Gemza was reading and typing on his phone before the crash.

He said had the driver been keeping a lookout, he would have seen the victim and been able to turn his steering wheel.  

Gemza will serve a minimum three years and three months in jail. 

Dozens of people outside Newcastle courthouse.

Family and friends of Bryson Dimovski attended court for the sentencing. (ABC Newcastle: Carly Cook)

Family anger over sentence

Outside the court, Andrew Dimovski said the court system failed his son.

“A boy who had his whole life ahead of him, he was left to die on the side of the road like he was nothing,” he said.

“The court’s answer to that: three years, three months.

“If that was your family, you tell me if that’s justice?”

Mr Dimovski said Gemza was rewarded with a discount on his sentence for entering an early guilty plea.

“We’re calling on the Attorney-General, Michael Daly, to review these laws, because you should never be rewarded for leaving the scene of a crash.”

Judge’s message to courtroom

Before sentencing proceedings started, everyone in the courtroom was asked to turn off their mobile phone, not just put them on silent.

Judge Marr told everyone to do this because “they [phones] are a distraction to you and to me”. 

“We each share a responsibility to others on the road”.

He then asked the courtroom not to turn on their mobile phones until after they got home.

“Don’t do it for me, do it for Bryson Dimovski,” he said.

“Are they worth the life of a child? The answer will be, ‘No.'”

Judge Marr said he did not want to see the sadness, anguish and grief experienced by the Dimovski family to be repeated.

Outside court, Mr Dimovski also had a message for drivers.

“When you get behind the wheel of a vehicle, please, just focus on driving,” he said.

“The consequences are catastrophic, destroy lives, in fact, the entire generation.”

With time already served, Gemza will be eligible for parole in February 2029.Â