By STEVE KENNEDY and HEATHER BROWNE

The Sun is launching a campaign today to sort out Britain’s muddled driving laws – so killer motorists get tougher sentences.

In case after case, maniacs cause death on the roads – only to end up being charged with minor offences for which they get light sentences.

The daft laws were highlighted by The Sun yesterday when serial offender Mark Webster, 36, got just 5 ¹/₂ months’ jail for killing teacher Anthony Wilkinson, 35, after a six-hour drinking binge.

Currently killer drivers who could be charged with causing death by dangerous driving often end up facing the lesser charge of careless driving.

Some of the worst cases involve hit-and-run killers, who are charged only with failing to stop or failing to report an accident.

But last night a growing band of campaigners – including families of victims, MPs and road safety watchdogs – called for killer drivers to face a single offence of MANSLAUGHTER.

Zoe Stow, of safety group Roadpeace, said: “At the moment there are too many offences and clever lawyers are able to exploit loopholes. The current offences are far too feeble. Often the maximum sentence is six months and magistrates rarely give the maximum. Sentences should reflect that someone has died.”

A spokesman for the Victims of Crime Trust added: “There should be a charge of manslaughter for those drivers that kill. Leaving someone lying for dead on the road with a broken body is contemptible.”

Furious

Yesterday we told how Webster, who mowed down science teacher Anthony in Hull, got off lightly even though he admitted careless driving, having no insurance, failing to stop, failing to report an accident and driving while disqualified.

He is the latest in the series of killer drivers who were let off by courts unable to hand out real justice.

In February, Algerian illegal refugee Kamel Kadri, 38, was jailed for just six months after killing nine-year-old Callum Oakford in Ferring, West Sussex, on New Year’s Day.

He was only charged with failing to stop and failing to report an accident.

Callum’s sister Kathryn Proudfoot, 22, said: “We are furious and determined to create a new law. Hitting and leaving a child to die must carry a greater penalty. It must be tried as manslaughter.”

Failed Iraqi asylum seeker Aso Mohammed Ibrahim, 25, got just four months after leaving 12-year-old Amy Houston to die in a hit-and-run crash in Blackburn, Lancs.

Amy’s dad Paul said: “He’s laughing at the justice system. He will be back on the streets in two months.”

Lee Jones, 24, had drunk four bottles of beer when he swerved on to the wrong side of the road in Poole, Dorset, and hit a Renault, killing three young volleyball players. He could only be charged with careless driving and got off with £1,500 fine.

One of his victims was Mark Pitman, 18. His sister Nicola, 20, stormed: “The law has to be changed so people who kill on the roads are given custodial sentences.”

Professor Paul Rock, of the London School of Economics, blamed changes to the Road Traffic Act in 1956 and 1991 for letting off killers. He said: “We have drifted from dangerous and reckless, to reckless, back to dangerous and have surely lost sight of the central feature which is one of a violent death.”

Notes

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“The law has to be changed so people who kill

on the roads are given custodial sentences.”

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custody – the state of being kept in prison, especially while waiting to go to court for trial

to be in custody

to be taken into custody – to be in a state of being guarded: The man has now been taken intocustody. (= he is being kept in a police prison before going in front of a judge)

to be held in custody: She was held in police custody for six hours.

custodial sentence – a period of time that someone must stay in prison: The offender was too young to be given a custodial sentence.

Lancs – written abbreviation for: Lancashire

Exercises

I. Comprehension and discussion. Answer the following questions:

1. What do they call for in the article?

2. Do you think manslaughter is just the right word for offences that drunk drivers commit on the roads?

3. What is the maximum sentence magistrates can give the offenders? Do you think it is adequate?

4. Do you agree that light penalties make drivers irresponsible? Will creating new laws help solve the problem?

II. Vocabulary. One and the same idea can be often expressed in different words. Compare the vocabulary used in the article from The Daily Mail with that from The Sun. Paraphrase the sentences using the words from the article One life, six months:

1. …Mark Webster, 36, got just 5 ¹/₂ months’ jail for killing teacher Anthony Wilkinson, 35, after a six-hour drinking binge.

2. But last night a growing band of campaigners … called for killer drivers to face a single offence of manslaughter.

3. In February, Algerian illegal refugee Kamel Kadri, 38, was jailed for just six months …

4. Failed Iraqi asylum seeker Aso Mohammed Ibrahim, 25, got just four months after leaving 12-year-old Amy Houston to die …

5. Lee Jones, 24 … swerved on to the wrong side of the road … and hit a Renault, killing three young volleyball players.

6. “The law has to be changed so people who kill on the roads are given custodial sentences.”

III. Here is another story, taken from The Daily Mirror. Some of the words have been removed. Here they are:

hit-and-run killed murder charged crossing ran over magistrates

Fill the spaces with the appropriate words:

Man on 3 death rap

Three friends were _______ in a suspected _______ as they walked to a barbecue yesterday.

John Gibbings, 37, Martin Connop, 31, and Emma Procter, 25, were _______ the road.

Barbecue coals and cans of drinks they were carrying were left in the road after they were _______ by a Ford Maverick in Cwmbran, South Wales.

A man of 29 will appear before _______ today _______ with _______.

Date: 2015-12-24; view: 764