A Horsham woman has told a County Court judge half of her died the day her husband was killed by a truck as he rode his bike on a highway in western Victoria.
Liam Batson, 24, was hit on Dimboola Road in Horsham by a B-Double being driven by Amala Paulson on December 19, 2019.
Ms Paulson was found guilty in a trial earlier this month of dangerous driving causing death and failing to stop.
Mr Batson's widow, Judy-Ann Batson, read her victim impact statement in the County Court on Wednesday.
"He was a once in a lifetime love," she said.
"He was always first to hear my news, and on that day and every single moment since, I have longed to share everything with him and seek his support, which I can no longer have."
She said events such as her children's first days of primary school were "another proud but heartbreaking milestone that Liam could not attend with us."
Ms Batson said she had lost work, weight and hair in the years since her husband's death, and had become hypersensitive to trucks and cyclists on the road.
"Nothing can prepare you for the experience of seeing your loved one (at the coroner)," she said.
She turned to Ms Paulson.
"You caused that. Today my pain is as raw as the day you took away my soulmate. I'll never ever forgive you," she said.
Mr Batson's stepdaughter remembered him as her best friend, and his mother Narelle Janetzki said she had nightmares, anxiety and depression resulting from the incident.
"I have a life sentence from not having him, it just hurts," she told the court.
Culpability debate
The court heard that under Victorian law, the maximum penalties for each of dangerous driving causing death and failing to stop was 10 years in prison.
Ms Paulson's lawyer, Campbell Thomson, told the court it was an exceptional case that warranted a combination sentence of prison and other punishments.
He said his client was in the Dame Phyllis Frost Centre prison for women, on her own in isolation for 23 hours each day.
Mr Thomson she was not allowed to be in the main centre because she hadn't undergone full transition to a woman, and that prison staff had to use a van to transport her to get treatment within the prison.
He said Ms Paulson had assisted on multiple occasions when she had come across other road accidents, and would have done so for Mr Batson had she realised she had hit him.
Prosecution lawyer Andrew McKenry said general deterrence remained a "compelling factor" to hand down a straight prison sentence.
"Ms Paulson has not been found guilty of negligence, but dangerous driving, and that suggests prolonged inattention," he said.
'Truly tragic'
Judge Simon Moglia said he would request a report to determine all the circumstances which should influence the severity of Ms Paulson's sentence.
He also thanked the gallery for its "patience and good grace" during the four-year judicial process.
"In the court's experience, cases such as this are truly tragic," he said.
"Nobody intended for anything wrong to happen on this day, and yet tragically, terrible results have occurred.
"I appreciate that family and those impacted by these events on both sides have, until today, been placed in a terrible position of dealing with their own grief and distress without being able to hear from others."
The case has been adjourned for mention on April 18.
