The news headlines consistently cover stories of tragic road accidents. This next one from the Daily Mail is a particularly horrifying one, which many of you may have seen in the press recently.
According to reports from the Daily Mail, amongst many other press offices, (http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1314227/Drink-driving-nurse-sentenced-8-years-killing-grandmother.html), a drunk driver has been sentenced to 8 years after killing a grandmother and injuring two young children when she drove on to a pavement whilst on her way to an alcoholism counselling session. It’s an absolute tragedy of a story – the report advises that 59 year old Judy De Gelas was killed from the impact, and her five year old granddaughter Libby was dragged across the road under the car bumper, suffering a fractured skull and a chest wound. Her 9 year old grandson Joshua also suffered a fractured skull.
The driver responsible, 47 year old nurse Jacquie Loosley, was found three and a half times over the legal limit when the incident occurred in June. The sentencing Judge, Seddon Cripps, reportedly “choked back tears” when he served the 8 year sentence and 15 year driving ban on Loosley after she admitted to careless driving under the influence of alcohol; I can completely understand why. He said “nothing I can do or say will bring Judy De Gelas back to life or heal the devastating injuries suffered by these little children.” From the dock, Loosely reportedly said “you cannot punish me more than I punish myself every day.”
It’s an absolutely terrible story to hear about – there really isn’t much more that can be said or discussed about the incident. The law against drink-driving is there for this exact reason – whilst under the influence of alcohol, a driver’s judgement and ability to drive is impaired – this is a fact! Why people continue to flout the law is beyond me. The result of this incident is a fatality and two seriously injured young children. I’d like to say let this be a lesson to others who consider drinking and getting behind the wheel of a car, but there are always stories in the press about drink-drive related incidents; people just don’t seem to care.
In a separate report from the Daily Mail (http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1314722/Speed-cameras-dont-stop-REAL-danger-motorists-despite-300-increase-Labour-government.html), research has indicated that speed cameras do little to stop “real danger motorists”, despite 300% increases during the Labour Government years. The report states that the increase in the use of the cameras has not done a great deal to stop the motorists on the road that are really a danger to other road users and the general public.
Ministers have reportedly expressed their concerns over the issue: the cameras do well to catch a motorist driving a few miles over the limit on a road with a camera present, but there is still a lack of police patrols on the roads that are better equipped to spot reckless drivers. In the first Daily Mail report above, a witness allegedly sported Loosley’s car weaving across the road. A speed camera doesn’t spot a drunk driver – but the police certainly can. This is not to say that the tragic incident above could have been averted with more police presence on our roads – but you see my point. Speed cameras deter speeding motorists on a single stretch of road – a police officer can spot a driver flouting the rules on any road, or spot a drunk driver weaving across a road with relative ease.
It seems to me that more needs to be done. Let’s see what the Con-Dems can do to improve road safety during their term of power. And I hope this story above is a lesson to anyone even considering drink driving – the consequences can be tragic. Our thoughts and sympathies are of course with the families involved at this tough time.
