A jury has retired to consider if a mobile crane driver is guilty of an alleged hit-and-run causing grievous bodily harm to a woman in inner-Brisbane.

May 22, 2019

A Queensland Rail worker, who blamed a blind spot for allegedly running over a young woman with a mobile crane before fleeing as she lay seriously injured on an inner-Brisbane street, is waiting to hear his fate.

Andre-Shane Moorby, 60, pleaded not guilty in the Brisbane District Court to driving a Pettibone crane dangerously in October 2017 when it caused grievous bodily harm to Iuliana Stevenson.

On Wednesday, the jury retired to consider if Moorby is guilty over the incident, which left Ms Stevenson with fractures to her spine and upper body, as well as lacerations and abrasions.

Ms Stevenson was crossing at a light when she was hit at the intersection of Hamilton Place and Campbell Street in Bowen Hills about 12.45am.

She has no memory of the incident and did not give evidence during the trial.

Prosecutors allege Moorby failed to keep a proper lookout for her as he turned his heavy-duty vehicle left onto Hamilton Place after his red arrow went out.

Moorby’s offending is aggravated by him fleeing the scene despite knowing Ms Stevenson had been hit, the Crown alleges.

Judge Brian Devereaux told the jury for a finding of guilty the prosecution must prove there is some serious breach of proper (driving) conduct.

“The consequences, in this case, was there were very serious injuries to a person,” he said.

But that alone can’t determine the driver’s guilt, Judge Devereaux said as he briefed the jury.

“It has been articulated in this case that Mr Moorby drove the crane dangerously by failing to keep a proper lookout, by failing to see a pedestrian, by failing to check the obvious blind spot he was aware of,” he said.

CCTV footage played for the jury shows him stopping his vehicle briefly after he hit her before driving off.

In a police interview, 35-year rail worker Moorby denied being inattentive but said a “blind spot” from the driver’s seat meant “I don’t really see too much.”

“Really, I can’t tell you anything about this,” he said.

“I don’t know where she was or anything. I really don’t know where she’s come from.”

He said he was driving the crane, which is used to handle rail tracks, to return it to a depot at Bowen Hills at the end of his shift.