This verdict is very dangerous in my opinion. I can think of numerous accidents whereby a pilot could have faced the same consequences, because of what he, or she, did, in the heat of the moment - an example is the C404 EFATO after takeoff accident at Jandakot Airport a number of years ago.
I've raised the issue of startle factor several times before - including this video, which has a number of very important messages in relation to startle factor. I know little of what transpired in the court, but a defence built around startle factor, would have seemed like a reasonable starting point to my non legally trained brain.
I'm very sorry that a young passenger died as a result of this accident, but I think punishing the actual crash outcome on its own, is more than a bit harsh...
Just my 2 lire's worth...
VH-MLE