An inquiry into the death of a driver who fled police moments before a horrific three-car smash at Kambah will examine the impact of drugs in his system at the time, a court has heard.
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The inquest for Timothy Smith Brown, 24, is also set to look at whether ACT police followed guidelines when they pursued his car on the evening of September 4 last year.
Police said Mr Smith-Brown sped off when they tried to pull him over and they called off a pursuit shortly before the collision.
Mr Smith-Brown's pregnant partner, Felicity Jessop was rushed to hospital and gave birth to a boy she named Tim later that night.
A Kambah man, 66, and his wife, 64, were badly injured in the crash. Their two granddaughters also sustained injuries.
The circumstances surrounding the crash are set to be explored in an inquest before the ACT Coroner's Court.
The case was mentioned before Coroner Peter Morrison on Tuesday as he set down the hearing for three days in October.
It will examine the manner and cause of Mr Smith-Brown's death, but will also look at whether the police pursuit was correctly instituted and whether it was carried out and terminated in line with policy.
About 10 witnesses are expected to give evidence, including Ms Jessop, two civilian witnesses and toxicological expert Associate Professor Morris Odell.
ACT Policing witnesses will include the pursuit driver and passenger, lead crash investigator Tracey Duck and Sergeant Craig McPherson, who will comment on the force's old and new pursuit policies.
Counsel assisting Ken Archer said Professor Odell's evidence would focus on material about the presence of drugs in Mr Smith-Brown's system.
He would also examine footage of the chase and talk about the possible impact of drugs Mr Smith-Brown had ingested on his motor function.
Mr Archer noted ACT Policing had changed its pursuits policy since Mr Smith-Brown's death and said the hearing would look at how the new policy may or may not have affected the actions of police that day.
That evidence would help inform any recommendations in relation to matters of public safety arising out of the inquest, he said.
Members of Mr Smith-Brown's family were in court for the brief directions hearing.
Earlier, lawyer Andrew Klein was granted leave to appear at the inquest hearings to represent the Australian Federal Police.
In the days after the crash, ACT police chief Rudi Lammers defended the actions of the police officers involved and said they had followed correct protocols and guidelines.
The circumstances surrounding the crash are the subject of two internal police investigations, which are ongoing.
It later emerged Mr Smith-Brown was driving an unregistered car unlicensed at the time of the incident.
He was also awaiting sentence for almost running down a police officer when he fled a traffic stop in November 2014.
A GoFundMe online fundraising page that was set up to help Ms Jessop and baby Tim as they recovered from the crash raised more than $1800.
But the crash sparked a public backlash, with Mr Smith-Brown's mother Joanne Smith saying members of the public had painted a "horrible picture" of her son on social media in the days after the crash.
"He'd be mortified to know he hurt that elderly couple, he'd be so shattered," she said.
"It's just so sad, so very, very sad. I don't know what he was thinking."
