Former Collingwood player Shannon Cox jailed for manslaughter of two elderly CWA women

A former AFL player will spend at least eight years behind bars after his life spiralled into a deadly drug addiction that eventually claimed the lives of two women in a meth-fuelled car crash.

Shannon John Cox, 39, played with South Fremantle in the West Australia Football League (WAFL) before he was drafted to Collingwood in the AFL in 2006.

Collingwood described Cox as a defender at first who showed positive signs as a winger and lead-up half-forward. He played 25 games with the club before he lost his place in 2009.

Cox had a troubled upbringing and began using alcohol and drugs at just 13 years of age.

“He was bagging up drugs before he was taught how to ride a bike, it was a lonely and violent environment he was in,” his lawyer Paul Holmes told the WA Supreme Court on Wednesday.

Mr Holmes said his client left high school in year 9 and learnt to read when he played with Collingwood, but six years after his AFL career, Cox eventually succumbed to drug addiction and spent time in prison for drug offences.

“Sport took him away from addiction. When he played at a high level he wasn’t using because of drug tests and scrutiny. When that went away he went straight back to drugs,” Mr Holmes said.

Cox was on a community-based order for drug-related offences when he made a fatal decision to drive 414km from Geraldton to Perth with his 12-year-old daughter to collect his wife from prison on June 7, 2024.

He had consumed meth in the days before and was sleep-deprived when he fell asleep behind the wheel of his Toyota Prado on the Brand Highway near Cooljarloo about 8.55am that morning.

Christian Owens was driving a prime mover and towing a trailer north when he saw Cox cross to the wrong side of the road into his path.

Mr Owens moved his truck to avoid colliding with Cox, but the Prado hit the side of his trailer, spun and then crashed head on into a Suzuki Ignis that was travelling north behind the truck.

Two women aged in their 80s were inside the vehicle on their way to a CWA Choir and Drama Festival at Badgingarra, just 40km from where the collision occurred.

Coral Senior, 83, and Thelma Clausen, 82, had been lifelong friends for 60 years and were life members of the CWA for more than five decades when Cox struck their car in his Prado.

The two women survived the impact but suffered significant injuries and deteriorated quickly, both dying at the scene.

Cox was taken to hospital for mandatory drug testing that revealed he had 0.77mg of methamphetamine and amphetamine in his system and had showed signs of someone who was sleep-deprived.

While he was out on bail facing charges over the crash, he failed a drug test and was jailed while he awaited sentencing.

His lawyer said Cox’s drug addiction was so great that he breached his bail conditions, which was in contrast to wanting to reunite his family, the reason behind the fateful trip.

State prosecutor Michael Cvetkoski said Cox should not have been behind wheel and his decision changed the course of many lives.

“He chose to drive when he was severely intoxicated on meth. In that state, he was a significant danger to himself, his daughter and other road users on the Brand Highway,” he said.

“An expert indicated a degree of meth intoxication rendered him incapable of operating a motor vehicle.

“It is unsurprising he lost control of vehicle in the way he did and caused catastrophic events.

“He was meant to be in the community doing the right thing and complying with conditions placed upon him. Instead, he decided to use drugs and drive on the road, taking two lives.”

Justice Stephen Lemonis said during sentencing that drugs had been a prevailing factor in Cox’s life since 2016 and the fatal crash came about because of his meth addiction.

“You had a significant concentration of meth in your blood, you had taken a significant amount that rendered you incapable of being in control and had a lack of sleep,” he said.

“You posed a significant danger to yourself, other road users and your own daughter that eventuated into a tragic accident.”

Cox pleaded guilty to two counts of unlawfully killing another under such circumstances as not to constitute murder in the WA Supreme Court on Wednesday.

He was sentenced to 10 years and six months behind bars but will be eligible for parole after serving eight years and six months over the fatal crash.

His driver’s licence was also be suspended for four years from his prison release date.