The defendant renewed his application for leave to appeal against his sentence of twelve months imprisonment after conviction for causing death by dangerous driving. He had been driving a slow moving agricultural vehicle along a road. It was evening, and the vehicle was being driven without lights. The other driver had come upon the farm vehicle and been obliged to overtake to avoid a collision. The overtaking vehicle ran head first into an oncoming vehicle, and the driver died. Some of the lights on the appellant’s vehicles were obscured by mud, and other parts of the trailer or had been removed.
Held: ‘The gravamen of this case, and indeed this type of case, lies in causing that vehicle to go out on to the road at that time of day in the condition in which it was, that is to say dusk or dark, as the witnesses say, with no visible lights. Instead of walking the short, five to ten minutes (if that), distance home to collect another vehicle, the applicant decided to take a chance and thereby take a risk of the safety of anyone who happened to be driving along the road behind him or, indeed, to a certain extent, in front of him. That was a dangerous thing to do, and it should have become obvious; indeed on the basis of what he said to the police it was obvious, both to the applicant and to any careful and competent person. An immediate custodial sentence was required’ The sentence was in no way excessive or wrong. Leave refused.
Judges:
Brian Walsh QC, Waller LJ, Hooper LJ
Citations:
[1998] EWCA Crim 775
Jurisdiction:
England and Wales
Criminal Sentencing, Road Traffic
Updated: 11 October 2022; Ref: scu.153649
