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The hearing into a Helensburgh hit-and-run accident that left a cyclist with fractured vertebrae and other broken bones has again been delayed, this time after witnesses failed to attend court. Talia Jade Van-Rysewyk, her left arm held in a sling, sat quietly at the back of Kiama Local Court on Thursday while her matter was briefly mentioned. Police prosecutor Mark Rollestone told the court police witnesses due to give evidence at the hearing were unavailable and he sought an adjournment. On the last occasion, Van-Rysewyk failed to attend her July court date, instead faxing through a medical certificate attributing her absence to illness. Defence solicitor Renata Matyear told the court at the time her client had been struck down by a vomiting bug, a diagnosis confirmed after Magistrate Mark Richardson ordered the doctor who issued the certificate give telephone evidence. Mr Richardson granted the adjournment on Thursday, but said the matter must run on the next occasion. Van-Rysewyk denies she failed to stop after hitting Brendan Braid as he cycled along the Old Princes Highway about 6.20am on January 5. Mr Braid, a 58-year-old accountant from the Sutherland area, was flung from his bike and landed by the side of the road. He suffered two fractured vertebrae, a broken femur, a cracked pelvis and fractured ankle. A group of cyclists found Mr Braid lying by the road several minutes after the collision and phoned emergency services. The magistrate adjourned the hearing to March.

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