Canberra was robbed of a fierce advocate for women and people with disabilities when the 2020 ACT Senior Australian of the Year was killed by a speeding driver, leaving an "irreplaceable gap" in her family and community.
"Mum wasn't done making the world a better place," Sue Salthouse's daughter, Luisa Fearnside, told the ACT Supreme Court on Friday.
"[Killer Mitchell Laidlaw] set the disability advocacy work back years by taking Mum out of this world."
Ms Fearnside's victim impact statement, read aloud by chief Crown prosecutor Anthony Williamson, was one of five delivered to the court on Friday as Laidlaw faced a sentence hearing.
Laidlaw, 35, previously pleaded guilty to charges of culpable driving causing death and drug-driving over the July 2020 crash that killed Ms Salthouse.
He was travelling about 80km/h in a 70km/h zone on Commonwealth Avenue, with methamphetamine in his system, when his utility rear-ended Ms Salthouse's wheelchair-accessible motorcycle.
Ms Salthouse, a 71-year-old paraplegic who broke her back in 1995, went into cardiac arrest and died from injuries sustained in the crash.
In her victim impact statement, Ms Fearnside described Ms Salthouse as "a massive part of the Canberra community", who had been "robbed of a distinguished death".
"The person who was able to reassure me and tell me everything was going to be OK, my cheerleader, is gone," she said.
Jane Taylor sat in the witness box to tell the court about the "irreplaceable gap" left in her life by the 71-year-old's death.
"Sue was my beloved and only sibling, my sister," Ms Taylor said.
"I miss her terribly."
Ms Taylor said she and Ms Salthouse had been "totally in sync with each other" as children, sharing a secret language and growing up like twins.
As adults, they shared their worries and confided in each other.
"Only we knew and understood what each other had been through," she said.
The sudden and unnecessary loss of Ms Salthouse, an innocent victim, left Ms Taylor "deeply saddened and angry".
"Nothing and nobody can replace what she was to me," Ms Taylor said.
The court also heard statements from Ms Salthouse's three stepchildren.
Karyn Fearnside described the respected advocate as her best friend, while Ruth Fearnside expressed hope Ms Salthouse was OK in the afterlife.
Alex Fearnside listed the many things he missed about Ms Salthouse, including her unconditional support, wisdom and love.
He concluded by addressing Laidlaw, telling the offender he knew his role in Ms Salthouse's death had been a tragedy for his family as well.
"Mr Laidlaw, I want you to know I bear you no ill will," Mr Fearnside said.
Chief Justice Lucy McCallum, who commended Mr Fearnside for this gracious statement, ultimately decided to sentence Laidlaw on July 15.
While she said she hated to prolong the process for Ms Salthouse's family, she wanted to read a pre-sentence report that was not yet available because Laidlaw had failed to attend an appointment with its author.
Laidlaw's lawyer, Toni Tu'ulakitau, apologised to the court for this, saying the offender had moved house and not received mail containing details of the appointment.
Chief Justice McCallum described this as "very unsatisfactory" and strengthened Laidlaw's bail conditions, warning him any breaches would likely result in him being remanded in custody until his sentence was imposed.
