A man accused of killing a teenager by running him down as he rode a stolen motorcycle in WA's Goldfields region told police he was chasing the boy but didn't mean to drive over him, a court has heard.
The man, who cannot be named for legal reasons, was aged 55 in August last year when he was charged with manslaughter over the death of 14-year-old Elijah Doughty in Boulder, near Kalgoorlie.
Elijah Doughty died after a crash, off Clancy Street, between a ute the accused was allegedly driving and a motorbike the boy was riding.
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The Supreme Court of WA heard on Monday the man saw the boy riding one of two motorbikes that had been stolen from a container outside his house the day earlier, gave chase and was too close when the teen suddenly turned in front of his ute.
The boy, who wasn't wearing a helmet, tumbled under the car after the impact and died instantly from severe injuries to his neck, chest, pelvis and right leg, and also suffered a fractured skull and bruised lungs.
The man called 000 and was told to place the boy in the recovery position and commence compressions before paramedics arrived, but the teen was pronounced dead at the scene.
"All of a sudden, he's just gone straight in front of me and I've gone straight over the top of him," the man told police.
He closed the gap just before the crash and admitted he was "too close" when the boy suddenly turned.
"I was right on top of him. When he veered into me, I couldn't stop.
"I'd only just got up to him at that stage.
"I weren't trying to run him over."
The court heard the small, 70CC motorbike didn't have sentimental value to the man but the other one that was stolen did, and he hoped the boy could tell him where it was.
The father-of-two described the impact as "horrible", telling police he didn't normally get into pursuits and in hindsight, he would "not go down that path again".
"He was clearly emotional from having his bike stolen," prosecutor David Davidson said.
"In his own words, adrenaline was pumping."
Defence counsel Seamus Rafferty said his client was guilty of dangerous driving occasioning death but not manslaughter.
The man made a split-second decision that he would always regret and had gone to the area to look for his bikes after police had told him it was a "dumping ground".
The jury has already seen CCTV footage of the early stages of the pursuit.
The boy's mother Petrina James and grandfather Albert Doughty are attending the trial, which is scheduled to run until Tuesday next week.
With AAP
