The father of three children who were tragically killed by a drunk driver in Sydney’s Oatlands area has had a face-to-face encounter with their offender behind bars.
Danny Abdallah met Samuel William Davidson, who was intoxicated and under the influence of drugs while speeding when he struck a group of seven children who were on their way to get ice cream. The meeting took place at Cessnock Correctional Centre for an interview with Seven News Spotlight.
The crash was fatal for siblings Sienna, 8, Angelina, 12, and Antony, 13, along with their cousin Veronique Sakr, 11. Another child, Charbel Kassas, 11, sustained severe injuries, resulting in a two-month coma.
Danny and his wife Leila had previously conveyed their forgiveness towards Davidson to avoid harboring negativity for the wellbeing of their surviving children, but the extent of their forgiveness was truly highlighted during this remarkable encounter.
Davidson, aged 34, received a 20-year prison sentence with a minimum of 15 years before parole eligibility. However, Danny expressed that if it were his decision, he would prefer Davidson’s release the next day.
‘Whether it’s 100 years or one day, it’s not going to make me feel any different,’ Danny said.
He emphasized that his main concern is his family, stating that Davidson’s incarceration doesn’t change anything for them. However, he acknowledged that ‘justice serves the community to show that this kind of conduct receives punishment.’
The two also prayed together during the visit. Davidson previously revealed how he converted to become a Maronite Catholic, the same religion Danny and his family follow, largely due to how they had forgiven him.
Danny Abdallah (left) met the man who crashed his ute into three of his young children while they walked to get ice cream and killed them, Samuel Davidson (right)
Davidson is pictured after the horror crash during which he was drunk, on drugs and speeding
Davidson also apologised to Danny, his family, emergency service workers who attended the scene, neighbours who witnessed the crash and the wider community, before he shared a warning to not get behind the wheel while intoxicated.
In the interview, Davidson also opened up about his hard-drinking lifestyle before the incident, pledging those days were behind him.
‘It’s a shame that I had to enjoy life under the influence of alcohol or anything like that to enjoy it, because I can tell you my thoughts about that are completely different now,’ he told the program.
Davidson, who spends up to 17 hours a day inside his cell, said it was important to him to keep a clean cell, the way he would at home.
‘I do try and keep it that way because I just think it looks better and yeah, it just makes it more homely. Yeah, I was like that on the outside too,’ he told the program.
With a decade still to serve, Davidson said he longed to be able to open and close a door for himself when he is finally freed from custody.
Davidson (pictured) said he spent many of his weekends getting drunk before the crash
Danny Abdallah prayed with Davidson when he visited him inside Cessnock Correctional Centre
Mr Abdallah said he and his wife have already forgiven Davidson and speak to him regularly
Anthony, 13, Angelina, 12, Sienna, eight, (pictured) were killed instantly in the crash along with their cousin Veronique Sakr, 11
‘I’ve had a dream where I was waiting for a door to open at home. At home you just open a door, you know what I mean?’ he said.
‘Here you’ve got to wait for a door … freely opening it – I can’t wait,’ he said.
Danny has attributed his decision to forgive Davidson to his Christian faith but added it was necessary for the sake of his marriage and surviving children.
‘At the end of the day, I’ve still got three other kids. I need to be a father too and I need to be a husband to my wife, and it’s already hard enough,’ he said.
He also said he initially began speaking with Davidson because he ‘needed closure’.
He said he liked ‘confrontation’ and needed Davidson to know who he was and the hurt he had caused the family and why they had chosen to forgive him.
