30-year-old Shubha Anand was behind the wheel of a car that crashed into another vehicle waiting at an intersection, killing a 19-year-old nursing student in January last year.
Ms Anand's blood alcohol reading was 0.159 – three times the legal limit – two hours after the high-speed crash in Williams Landing, in Melbourne’s west.
Ms Anand told police someone else was driving the vehicle but a DNA test of the blood found on her car’s airbag proved she was behind the wheel at the time of the fatal crash.
On Friday, Victorian Country Court Judge John Smallwood described Anand's behaviour as a "very serious" example of culpable driving while sentencing her to seven years in jail with a non-parole period of four years, reported.
A day before her sentencing, Ms Anand pleaded guilty to culpable driving causing death and applied to the prison authorities to take her eight-month-old son to jail with her.
Her lawyer told the County Court that she was concerned over the uncertainty about which way the authorities may rule. The judge acknowledged her anxiety and was concerned about what would happen to her son.
But victim Natasha Pigot's mother, Aleacha McMaster, said Anand's decision to get pregnant months after the crash was selfish, reported.
"She chose to have a baby and she chose to get married and live a different life after she caused this accident. I didn't," Ms McMaster was quoted as saying.
Ms Pigot's family said they could never forgive Anand, and were angry she never apologised to the family for what she did.
On January 10 last year, Ms Anand had left angrily after an altercation with her boyfriend after a party despite her boyfriend asking her not to drive.
She then crashed her vehicle into Ms Pigot's car 3 kilometres away, at a speed of 115 kmph, and then raced off.
Ms Anand was taken into custody after Ms Pigot’s family members read out victim impact statements.
Indian national, Ms Anand is an Australian permanent resident and may be deported after she is released from jail.
