Family of SA man Nick McKenzie, who died in drunken crash, asks court to show driver mercy A GRIEVING family has asked the drunk man whose driving killed their son be spared jail, saying they will "lose another son" if he is imprisoned. In scenes of extraordinary forgiveness and compassion, the wife, parents and brother of Nick McKenzie today asked the District Court to show mercy to Scott Alksne. Alksne, 27, has pleaded guilty to one aggravated count of causing death by dangerous driving. In February this year, his car drifted off an unsealed road at Tooperang, 70km south east of Adelaide, and rolled when he overcorrected. Mr McKenzie - Alksne's passenger and best friend - suffered serious injuries and subsequently died in hospital. Today, the court heard Alksne had been driving at 70km/h in a 100km/h zone, and his blood alcohol reading at the time was 0.124. Alksne tried to assist Mr McKenzie after crash and summoned both police and an ambulance, giving officers a 61-page statement at the scene confessing to his intoxication. In a victim impact statement read to the court today, Mr McKenzie's wife Susan said she continued to struggle with the loss of her beloved husband and "other half." She said the couple's two young children still asked "when daddy is coming home" which broke her heart - but she did not want to see Alksne jailed. This was all a terrible accident ... Scott was Nick's best friend, and he has suffered from this just as much as me and my family, and will forever," she said. He is a good-hearted guy who always looked out for us, and I know he would trade places with Nick in a heartbeat if he could. In a joint statement, Mr McKenzie parents Jill and Leigh said Alksne had taken over their son's duties on their dairy farm. They said that, despite their ongoing grief, their concern had now turned toward Alksne's well-being. "We feel worried for Scott, he has been through this horrific accident as well," they said. We feel so sorry and sad for him ... we know it could just as easily been the reverse - Nick could have been driving and Scott the victim. They asked the court to impose a suspended sentence. "We feel we will be victims for a second time if we lose Scott (to jail), it would be like losing two sons," they said. We're very happy for him to keep working for us so we can all overcome this tragedy ... we just want to support Scott through this tragic ordeal. Mr McKenzie's brother, Pete, echoed their sentiments. "Having Scott around me is essential for my grieving ... he's like a brother to me," he said. Martin Anders, for Alksne, said his client had entered his guilty plea before police had even finished their investigations. He said Alksne and Mr McKenzie had been drinking at a buck's party before the crash and had intended to stay the night, but had been called back to work on the farm. Mr Anders said Mr McKenzie asked Alksne to drive, resulting in him making a "disastrous" choice. "Alksne takes full responsibility - he should never have chosen to drive," he said. From a very early stage he has made it absolutely clear he wants to take full responsibility for what was the worst decision of his life. He did not appreciate the extent to which he was intoxicated. Mr Anders said that, by reason of his guilty plea, Alksne qualified for a 40 per cent discount on his sentence under new Weatherill Government legislation. He also qualified for a lower-than-usual non-parole period due to his contrition, remorse and co-operation with police. Mr Anders asked his client's "inevitable" jail term be suspended, saying he was unlikely to reoffend. "He's a hardworking, good-natured, warm-hearted man who has faced up to his fault," he said. There's much to enliven a compassionate approach, here. Patrick Hill, prosecuting, said a jail term was the only appropriate sentence - however, he agreed suspending that term was within the court's discretion. Judge Julie McIntyre remanded Alksne on continuing bail for sentencing on Friday.