Killer drivers may face life sentences - following a campaign by the Chad

The father of a young dad killed by a dangerous driver said new Government proposals to increase sentences following our Drive For Justice Campaign was '˜fantastic news'.
Sharon and Geoff Winter hold a photograph of their son Luke.Sharon and Geoff Winter hold a photograph of their son Luke.
Sharon and Geoff Winter hold a photograph of their son Luke.

Killer drivers who take lives through dangerous and careless driving may face life sentences for the first time under a dramatic toughening of sentencing powers.

Our Drive For Justice campaign lobbying for harsher punishments for those who kill or seriously injure on our roads has achieved success on behalf of bereaved families who have lost loved ones in crashes.

Motorists who kill may face life sentences as the Government has unveiled a consultation looking at plans to deter dangerous and criminal behaviour on the road with the toughest penalties.

Geoff Winter, whose son Luke was killed by a driver showing off to his friend on the A60 in 2012 said the newly revealed proposals were ‘fantastic’.

Today Mr Winter said: “It is fantastic news as long as they serve the full sentence and they don’t knock time off served through tariffs.

“I absolutely welcome this but if we are going to get tough let’s get really tough and make them serve what they are given.

He added: “I know when someone like the Chad campaigns it has got to make a difference - you have the clout and the resources.

“Someone like me can protest and it won’t make a difference.”

Farm worker Joseph Weston, then aged 22, was jailed after Nottingham Crown Court was told how he was seen speeding up the A60 at Cuckney Hill “like lightning”.

Accident investigators said Weston, of Longdale Lane, Ravenshead, Mansfield, was doing 90mph when he lost control of his high-powered Ford Fiesta on a left-hand bend, smashing head-on into Luke, of Nether Langwith, on August 15, 2012. Mr Winter told the Chad: “Everything was stacked in favour of Weston by the judiciary. He got 50 per cent off a nine year sentence by pleading guilty when the evidence against him was overwhelming, he got a five-year sentence and served just more than two years.”

The proposals include introducing life sentences for causing death by dangerous driving; life sentences for careless drivers who kill whilst under the influence of drink or drugs and new three year jail terms for careless drivers causing serious injury.

Under the plans, dangerous drivers causing death by speeding, street racing or while on a mobile phone are among those now facing the same sentences as those charged with manslaughter.

Offenders who cause death by careless driving while under the influence of drink or drugs could also be handed life sentences - an increase on the current 14 year upper limit.

The proposals unveiled by the Ministry of Justice will see the maximum sentence will see the offence brought in line with manslaughter - one of the most serious crimes in the statute book.

The announcement follows the Drive For Justice campaign across Johnston Press calling for tougher sentences for killer drivers.

Our investigation revealed that dozens of motorists who have taken lives have walked free from court with the average sentence being just four years.

No one has received the current maximum jail term of 14 years.

Families whose loved ones were killed in crashes have reacted to the news and hope it will mean people in the future will be spared the pain they endured.

Justice Minister Sam Gyimah said: “Killer drivers ruin lives. Their actions cause immeasurable pain to families who must endure tragic, unnecessary losses.

“While impossible to compensate for the death of a loved one, we are determined to make sure the punishment fits the crime.

“My message is clear – if you drive dangerously and kill on our roads, you could face a life sentence.”

A consultation will seek views on whether the current maximum penalties available to the courts should be increased. Proposals include:

• Increasing the maximum sentence for causing death by dangerous driving from 14 years to life.

• Increasing the maximum sentence for causing death by careless driving while under the influence of drink or drugs from 14 years to life.

• Creating a new offence of causing serious injury by careless driving, with a maximum sentence of three years.

• Increasing minimum driving bans for those convicted of causing death.

The move has been welcomed by road safety charity, Brake, which has long campaigned for justice for families who have lost loved ones because of criminal drivers.

Gary Rae, campaigns director for Brake, says: “This is a vindication of our efforts, and those of victims’ families, calling for change.

“For too long, the justice system has treated them as second class citizens.

“We do remain concerned that the charge of ‘careless’ driving could remain. Some of the strongest feedback we have received from the families we work with, is that there is nothing careless about taking someone else’s life.

“We also want clarification on whether the current automatic 50 per cent discount where convicted drivers serve only half their tem in jail, will still apply for these new, proposed sentences.

“At this stage, these are proposals and we will be giving our full response before the February deadline.

“We would urge others, especially those directly affected by road deaths, to respond to the consultation.”

Amy Aeron-Thomas, advocacy and justice manager for RoadPeace, the national charity for road crash victims, says: “RoadPeace has always argued that causing death by driving is simply motor manslaughter. So we welcome the proposed change to increase the maximum sentence for Causing Death by Dangerous Driving to life imprisonment as this would bring it into line with manslaughter.

“A life sentence would only be used in the most extreme cases. But we see this as an important signal to society. For too long, the worst of the worst have got away with sentences that are too light.

“But the Government needs to change more than just the maximum custodial sentence. These drivers should never be allowed to drive again.

“The treatment of the bereaved families must also change.

“They deserve to have the same rights and support as families bereaved by manslaughter.

“This would happen if the government extended its definition of homicide to include culpable road deaths.”

• Sign the Drive For Justice petition here:- www.change.org/p/uk-parliament-deliver-stiffer-punishments-for-drivers-who-kill-or-seriously-injure-on-uk-roads

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