Hunt for hoons- Marlene Sutton at a Pakenham Upper roundabout near the site of her run-in with

By Jade Lawton
HOONS fled the scene of a car smash they caused in Pakenham Upper recently – and victim Marlene Sutton wants them held accountable.
Ms Sutton, of Pakenham, was driving near the corner of Gembrook-Pakenham Road and Mt Burnett Road on Sunday afternoon when she saw two white sedans doing burn-outs.
“I had to swerve, because one was coming at me sideways. The car stalled so I was stopped in the middle of the road, and another lady ran up the back of me,” she said.
“I was shocked and horrified.”
While uninjured, both Mrs Sutton and the driver of the other car were shaken by their near miss.
The hoons fled the scene before they could take down their registration numbers.
“I had a business in Gembrook for 15 years, and I’ve seen what happens when cars hit trees – I’ve seen two young people buried because they hit a tree,” she said.
“Trees are very unforgiving and death is the easy bit. Being left injured isn’t fun either.”
Ms Sutton said the road the hoons were using saw a lot of traffic on Sundays as tourists made their way to Gembrook’s parks and attractions.
“It’s fine if they want to hit a tree but I don’t want to be pushed into one. And 3.30 on a Sunday afternoon? That’s absolute bulls**t.”
Sergeant Nigel Atkins, of Cardinia’s Traffic Management Unit, said video evidence was the best way to nab hoons, which he described as ‘senseless.’
“Ultimately that is the best form of evidence because it’s an account of what they see. The other alternative is independent corroboration, having someone to support your statement,” Sgt Atkins said.
“It needs to be proved beyond reasonable doubt. Video evidence is irrefutable, corroborated evidence is good value but uncorroborated evidence becomes a bit weaker.”
Sgt Atkins said hoons could have their vehicle impounded and face fines of several thousand dollars depending on their behaviour.
He advised residents to contact 000 if they saw hoons.
Because of the lack of evidence, Ms Sutton did not make a formal complaint to police as she did not want to implicate the other driver.
But she hopes that someone may know the drivers of the two white sedans.
“I just want to see them off the road,” she said.