The Abdallah family, who lost three of their children and a cousin in the Oatlands tragedy three years ago, have launched a civil lawsuit against the murderous driver, Samuel William Davidson.
The legal action, believed to involve Davidson’s insurance policy, seeks payment for the ongoing trauma of the family and children who were injured but survived the catastrophic accident. He appears in NSW District Court next week.
The Abdallah children’s parents, Danny and Leila, publicly forgave Davidson, revealing this week that they were reunited with their parents “who are also grieving.”
Antony, 13, Angelina, 12, Sienna, eight, and their niece Veronique Sakr, 11, were walking along a lane to buy ice cream in Oatlands, western Sydney, when they were struck by a car and killed on February 1, 2020.
The Abdallah family before the accident that claimed the lives of three of their children. The civil action is listed in court next week.
Samuel Davison is serving a 20-year sentence after he crashed his car into a group of seven children, killing four instantly, while driving under the influence of drugs and alcohol.
Davidson was under the influence of drugs and alcohol, driving erratically and speeding when he fatally struck all four children.
Three other children were among the group shot down by Davidson, all with injuries and trauma.
Davidson, then 29, was sentenced in 2021 to 28 years with a 21-year non-parole period, which was reduced on appeal this year to a maximum of 20 years with a minimum of 15 years.
Danny Abdallah told Daily Mail Australia that the court matter was “confidential” and related to ongoing therapy and trauma, but declined to comment further.
Earlier this week, Abdallah revealed that the driver who killed his children was becoming a Maronite Catholic in jail because of the family’s forgiveness.
On a Christian Lives Matter podcast, Abdallah told Stand for Truth host Charlie Bakhos about Davidson’s conversion of the jail.
Abdallah, whose family are Maronite Catholics, explained that two people in jail contacted his spiritual adviser, Father Robert-Pio, claiming that Davidson wanted to meet him.
‘Leila and I talked to him [Fr Robert] a lot,’ said Abdallah.
‘[He] He’s a good guy and he feeds the bums… and there was a bum he feeds who ended up in jail and he said, “I got a boy that wants to meet you.”
“There was another guy who called him and said, ‘Look Father Robert, I have the driver who hit the Abdullah children, he’s in my cell.'”
Abdallah added that the inmates were unaware that Father Robert was their spiritual advisor, whom they leaned on after the tragic death of their children.
“Of all the priests in Australia, this guy is talking to Father Robert, my spiritual father, yes, and he doesn’t know it,” Abdallah said.
‘Well, the [Fr Robert] says: “I know Abdullah’s parents, I visit them regularly and talk to them, they come to my church.”
‘[Now] he [Davidson] he says the rosaries three times a day, goes to mass, studies the Bible and wants to become a Maronite Catholic.’
Abdallah said he was surprised by Davidson’s change of heart, but said it was due to the forgiveness shown by his family.
Mr Abdallah (right) spoke to Christian Lives founder Charlie Bakhos (left) on his ‘Stand for Truth’ podcast, revealing that Samuel Davison had a ‘change of heart’
Abdallah said he was “shocked” by Davidson’s change of heart and was told it was due to the forgiveness he and his wife Leila showed.
‘I was shocked. Honestly, I did not expect to hear that Father Robert went and visited him and talked to him and he made the first confession from him,” Abdallah said.
“They talked and he [Davidson] he said, “You know, everyone should have hated me, but thanks to Danny and Leila’s forgiveness I was able to see life in a different way.”
‘He [Father Robert] He said [Davidson] He kept saying how sorry he is and you know what he did was wrong but that’s what changed my heart.
A brave Ms. Abdallah returned to the scene two days after the horrific accident, where she held hands and said a rosary with her loved ones, before forgiving Davidson for his actions.
‘The type [driver]… Right now I can’t hate him. I don’t want to see it, but I don’t hate it,’ he told reporters.
‘I think in my heart to forgive him, but I want the court to be fair… I’m not going to hate him, because that’s not who we are.’
The couple later created the i4give Foundation, which coincides with the anniversary of the accident, to remember their lost loved ones and help others in similar situations.
Abdallah’s children Antony, 13, Angelina, 12, Sienna, eight, and niece Veronique Sakr, 11, died instantly in the crash.
Witnesses saw Davison speeding at a red light, turning counter-clockwise around a roundabout and driving at a top speed of 133 km/h in a 50 km/h zone before the accident.
The Christ-centered foundation aims to engage communities across Australia in a “shared embrace of the universal good of forgiveness.”
In June 2022, Danny and Leila received two standing ovations at the Vatican after giving a powerful speech on forgiveness.
The Western Sydney parents were invited by the Pope to share their heartbreaking story with thousands of parishioners at the 2022 World Meeting of Families in Rome.
Abdallah also told Bakhos that he and his wife spoke to Davison’s parents and discussed the incident over breakfast.
“I was nervous, it was difficult for all of us and also for them, but you know… we learned from this that there are no winners in this tragedy,” Abdallah said.
‘Samuel Davidson has a mother who is grieving and is going through her grief. We wanted to understand and show them that look of pain and they apologized for the actions of her son.
“I know they lost their daughter to cancer and then years later they lost their son now in prison and they have no one.
“They know what we are going through and they recognize it and we have also recognized their sadness and pain.”
Despite having lost three children, when Ms. Abdallah, 37, is asked how many children she has, she always says seven: “three in heaven and four here.”
Danny and Leila Abdallah pardoned Davison and started i4give Day and Foundation, which coincides with the anniversary of the accident, to remember their lost loved ones and help others in similar situations.
