A young mother will spend the next two months in prison after her twin daughters died in a single car accident while she was behind the wheel.
Rachel van Oyen, 32, was convicted of two counts of careless driving that caused death, serious physical injury or physical injury in the Northam Magistrates Court on Wednesday.
Hang Head Mother drove her Toyota camry West -Australia's Great Eastern Highway in the Wheatbelt -region, 300 km east of Perth, In February after a visit to the family in Kalgoorlie for a wedding.
The court was told that her car had gone off the road when she waved to avoid a marker along the road, so that it struck, before it cut a tree, turned around and landed on the roof.
Both children were cast out of the car and the seven -year -old died on the spot.
Van Oyen's lawyer, Michael Ryan, told the court that his client 'did the right things' to ensure that her daughters were safe.
She had stopped for breaks in the long -distance ride and there was no suggestion that fatigue played a role in the crash and everyone in the car had carried safety belts.
Van Oyen received an eight -month prison sentence for each of the deaths of the girls who were partially suspended by magistrate Sarah Oliver.
Rachel van Oyen depicted with her twin daughters Macey and Riley who died after a horror smash on a remote highway in Perth
The fatal crash happened on the Great Eastern Highway with the Toyota Camry that hit a tree 300 km east of Perth in the WA's Wheatbelt.
Mr. Ryan told the court that it was a heartbreaking incident.
“The circumstances around this incident are that Mrs. Van Oyen has already closed her eyes for a second, not even a second, the vehicle has become somewhat on the shoulder, she could see that there was a marker on the road, her instinct was to go to the right to avoid the collision with that marker,” he told the court, WA reported today.
“She has applied too much good direction on that handlebar, created a perfect situation when the vehicle has shifted sideways.”
Magistraat Oliver said that the crash was 'without a doubt serious'.
Van Oyen will spend Two months behind bars before he was released for six months on a conditional suspended sentence.
The rest of her sentence is suspended for a period of 12 months.
Outside the court the alienated father of her children, Darius James, said that nothing could bring his daughters back.
“If they were in children's car restrictions that are suitable for their size, the result may have been different,” said a family friend on behalf of the girls' father, the publication reported.
The family friend said that this fatal decision will forever 'chase' the family.
'Every time our side of the family had the girls, they were always in car seats. They were not of size not to be in car seats, “they said.
Van Oyen Her young daughters Macey and Riley had returned to Perth after a visit to family members in Kalgoorlie.
The mother escaped with only slight injuries while Macey and Riley died on the spot.
After the fatal crash, Mrs. Van Oyen said there were no words to describe this emptiness and pain that I drown in '
On the road where the Smash took place, visible slip markings showed that the car was heavily baked when it was brought from the highway of the single lane.
Van Oyen argued guilty of both charges against her.
During earlier hearing, her lawyer Michael Ryan told the important psychological issues caused by the crash prevented Van Oyen from being present.
Mr. Ryan said that it was 'extremely traumatic' because of the proof of the crash with his client and that he 'did not want to do that with her again'.
In the days after the crash that Van Oyen was posted on Facebook that 'nothing now makes sense' and that it 'I should have been' who died.
“What I would give to take your place, my dear girls,” she wrote.
'I have never felt as helpless as that day. All I could do was try to hold you briefly, even though you both had adult wings.
'Everything changed in an instant. My whole world fell apart, disappeared. There are still no words to describe this emptiness and pain in which I drown.
'Nothing makes sense now, you were my absolute world and nothing made me more complete than your mother was.
“I hope you both know how it really regrets me.”
Social media reports of family and friends describe the little girls as 'magical small twins' and 'True Sunshine Souls'.
WA Premier Roger Cook described the incident at the time as an 'absolute tragedy'.
A GoFundMe page set up by a family member to help 'Rachel' collected more than $ 53,000.
“Macey and Riley brought us so much love and joy, and as difficult as it is without them, our lives were made better through their short existence,” the page said.
“They were lively, brutal and beautiful young girls who had so much life and promise them for them.”
