Leeds Crash: Boy, 15, Detained For Causing Deaths

mikey4444 | 11:38 Fri 26th Jan 2018 | News

14 Answers

An update on that awful crash last November, where young people were killed in Leeds :::::

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-42829783

The boy, who cannot be named because of his age, was sentenced to four-and-a-half-years detention and disqualified from driving for seven years and three months by Judge Peter Collier QC.

I Suppose Apologies All Round Are Out Of The Question...

Uk Growth Continues.......

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mikey4444

Question Author

Spathy....not sure whether the sentence is correct or not, although I presume that it meets the guidelines for such offences.

The deaths of those 5 people, including 3 young boys will be his conscience for the rest of his life.

I would like to think that its made all the other potential criminals in the area think about the consequences, although I am not that convinced that it has.

A very sad state of affairs indeed.

emmie

surely he should be banned from driving for life. As to the fact he killed all those people, 4 and a 1/2 years is derisory.

mikey4444

Question Author

Perhaps New Judge will be along later, to say what the sentencing guidelines are in these cases.

emmie

still seems awfully light even for someone that's young.

Peter Pedant

crime as we well know from NJ involves an intention to do something ( normally er the crime )

and he most probably didnt intend to " do narfin"

as foreseeability - now very contentious
but I dont suppose the kid foresaw that if he drove like a dock, he would zero five others

mikey4444

Question Author

Peter....I drove 150 miles to Pembrokeshire yesterday, in some of the worst road conditions, that I have seen in years....very heavy, almost no visibility, risk of aquaplaning, etc, etc.

And yet there were still plenty of people driving too fast, too close to the car in front and without their headlights being on.

That bears little resemblance to what happened in Leeds but I merely use it as an example of where people drive badly, without care for others.

MallyJ

I wonder if the courts took into consideration that there were adults in the car and they may well have encouraged him. Certainly they did not stop him. Do they, as adults, not have some responsibility for this tragic outcome? If the boy is not fully responsible by virtue of his age and the adults in the car then the courts surely could not sentence him as if he was 30.

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New Judge

“Perhaps New Judge will be along later, to say what the sentencing guidelines are in these cases.”

And here he is.

First of all, Peter’s remark:

“…crime as we well know from NJ involves an intention to do something”

Not necessarily. Many crimes can be committed “recklessly” (that is, with no regard for the possible consequences) and this was undoubtedly one of those.

You have to bear in mind this is a serious offence (which cannot be dealt with in the Youth Court) involving a young offender (that is aged under 18). The normal “rule of thumb” for sentencing in such a matter is that the young person can expect to receive roughly half the sentence that an adult offender can expect. It’s only a rule of thumb, not an exact science, but fairly reliable. The maximum sentence for Causing Death by Dangerous Driving is 14 years (making it about seven years for a young offender). This individual pleaded guilty, entitling him to a one third discount on his sentence. So the maximum that would be expected is four years and eight months. He was sentenced to four years and six months which is quite close to the maximum.

As far as the ban is concerned, lifetime bans from driving are extremely rare and bans of more than five years are very uncommon, even for the most serious of crimes. Judges and Magistrates are entitled to take into account the time spent in custody when assessing a ban. The miscreant here will be released after serving half his sentence so he will do two years and three months. Upon release he will have five years of his disqualification remaining.