By Ric Stevens, Open Justice reporter of 
The scene of the fatal crash on the Hawke's Bay Expressway. Photo: NZME
The Parole Board has apologised "unreservedly" to Caleb Baker's family after it set free the texting truckie who killed the young motorist before she was eligible for release.
The 22-year-old's family told NZME the mistake has caused them more pain and shattered what little trust they still had in the system.
Truck driver Sarah Hope Schmidt served nine months of a jail term of two years and four months after causing the fatal crash on the Hawke's Bay Expressway last year.
Another driver was injured and hospitalised after the crash, in which Schmidt ran into a stationary queue of vehicles because she had been distracted by using her phone while driving.
Schmidt later pleaded guilty to two charges of dangerous driving - one each of causing death and injury.
Caleb Baker's funeral was held at the Napier Tech rugby clubrooms. Photo: Photo / Napier Technical Sports Club
She was released on parole on 15 July this year after appearing "visibly upset" and remorseful before the Parole Board on 1 July, her first appearance.
But the Parole Board chairwoman, Justice Jan-Marie Doogue, said today that it had now been identified that Schmidt was not eligible for release on parole until two weeks later - 29 July.
The board was "in error" in granting her release on 15 July.
Justice Doogue said Schmidt would not be recalled to prison to serve the two weeks.
"She has not breached her release conditions and is not considered to be an undue risk to the community," she said.
Justice Doogue said the board wanted to publicly acknowledge and take accountability for what had happened.
"It is particularly mindful of the additional distress this news will cause the family of Caleb Baker, and to the other driver injured in the crash, and apologises unreservedly to them," she said.
"All board members have been reminded of the importance of ensuring they are aware of an offender's parole eligibility date and their decisions are consistent with that date."
Baker's uncle Shane Taurima said last week that his family were "devastated" by Schmidt's release after serving less than one-third of her sentence.
"Nine months for taking a life is impossible to comprehend."
Today, Taurima said Justice Doogue had contacted Baker's mother, Janice Stevens, this morning to advise her of the error and offer the apology.
"Janice was extremely distressed and unable to speak when told this," he said.
"The whānau are deeply distraught and upset that such a serious mistake could occur.
"While the board has acknowledged the error and apologised, this has caused further pain and disbelief for our whānau," Taurima said.
He said that while family members appreciated the board had taken responsibility, the mistake had "shattered what little trust we had left in the system".
"Families like ours deserve better - greater care, respect, and accountability from those making decisions that affect victims so deeply.
"Our focus remains on Caleb, honouring his memory and continuing to speak up so that no other whānau has to endure this kind of hurt."
44 minutes on the phone
Schmidt spent 44 minutes using her phone during a two-hour run between Dannevirke and Napier Port in the early morning of 9 February, 2024.
After starting on her return journey down the Hawke's Bay Expressway, she was still using her phone when she ploughed her 30-tonne Volvo truck into the back of Baker's Toyota Hilux, which was at the rear of the stationary queue.
In the 16 seconds before the collision, a dashboard camera captured Schmidt looking at her phone on 10 separate occasions, for between half a second and two seconds at a time.
She looked down at her phone four times in the final six seconds.
Schmidt was still using her phone two seconds before the crash, when she was travelling at 86km/h.
Although she then applied the brakes, it was too late, and she was moving at 76km/h when her truck, laden with a shipping container, ran into the back of Baker's ute.
Baker, a talented rugby player who worked for Fulton Hogan as a specialist operator, died at the scene from multiple blunt force injuries. He was only 4km from his home.
His vehicle was shunted into a Holden Captiva, which in turn was pushed forward into the back of a light truck. The Holden driver was injured.
Schmidt was sentenced in the Napier District Court in October last year to two years and four months in prison and disqualified from driving for three years.
Her statutory release date was 16 February, 2027. She will remain on release conditions until then.
* This story originally appeared in the New Zealand Herald.
