Serious injury offence will '˜fill gap in the law'

A NEW offence of causing serious injury by careless driving could have led to jail time in a horror case.
Sophie WilkinsonSophie Wilkinson
Sophie Wilkinson

Sophie Wilkinson was 17 when the 18-year-old driver of the car she was in did not stop at a junction and his car was hit by an 18-ton lorry.

She suffered major head injuries, a serious fracture to her skull, major abdominal injuries and a ruptured pancreas which developed into pancreatitis.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

The teenager was left in a coma after the crash in the Gravel Hill, Forest Road and Bishops Wood Road in Swanmore, near Fareham, on October 9, 2007.

The driver admitted careless driving but was given a 12-month ban and fine by Fareham magistrates.

Government has now vowed to bring in a new offence of causing serious injury by careless driving, which they say could have led to a jail term for the driver.

Justice minister Dominic Raab said the offence would fill a ‘gap in the law’.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

He said: ‘We will introduce a new offence of causing serious injury by careless driving, punishable by imprisonment to fill a gap in the law and reflect the seriousness of some of the injuries suffered by victims in this category of case.’

In 2016, 157 people were sentenced for causing death by dangerous driving with a further 32 convicted of causing death by careless driving while under the influence.

Sentencing remains a decision for judges made on a case-by-case basis.