Man faces extradition in Australian traffic death
MIDLAND A Midland man who is accused of killing another man in a 2007 accident has found himself in a West Texas courthouse after fleeing the charges out of New South Wales, Australia.
John Perry Whittington is charged with "dangerous driving occasioning death" by the Tumut Local Court in Tumut, New South Wales, Australia.
According to the criminal complaint filed with the Midland Federal Court, Whittington was driving north Sept. 13, 2007, on the Snowy Mountains Highway in Talbingo, Australia, when he swerved into the wrong side of the road, colliding with a vehicle driven by Robert Hill, who was driving south.
The weather conditions were normal, neither driver was intoxicated with alcohol or drugs and neither vehicle failed mechanically, according to the complaint.
Authorities arrested Whittington Oct. 5, 2007, in the accident and he admitted to being on the wrong side of the road at the time of the accident, but he said he was swerving to avoid Hill, the complaint stated.
However, according to the complaint, expert analysis concluded Hill was on the correct side of the road.
Whittington was then served with a court notice Jan. 15, 2008, and appeared at the court Feb. 25, 2008. He was served with a copy of the evidence on April 10, 2008 and sought legal advice sometime between that date and April 20, 2008, according to the complaint.
It was at that time, according to the complaint, that Whittington “left a letter to his employer stating that he was leaving for the United States because he believed that he would have to serve time in prison if he remained, and that there was not sufficient evidence to extradite him back to Australia.”
Whittington failed to appear at the Tumut Local Court and a warrant was issued for his arrest April 28, 2008, according to the complaint.
The Embassy of Australia in Washington, D.C., filed a request for Whittington’s extradition on Nov. 28, 2011, and also offered an alternative charge with which Whittington could be held accountable for: negligent driving occasioning death.
The offenses are punishable under Australian law by imprisonment for more than a year, according to the request.
Jason Leach, Whittington’s defense attorney, said he doesn’t want to speak about the case before the first hearing, which according to the Public Access to Court Electronic Records system is at noon Thursday.
Prosecuting attorney Mark Roomberg was not immediately available and calls to the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Midland were unanswered.
Assistant U.S. Attorney John Klassen was scheduled to be in trial for the remainder of the week.
Editor's note: A previous version of the story labeled Whittington as an Australian man. Whittington is a U.S. citizen and a Midland native. He lived in Australia from 2003 until 2008.
