VICTIM: Motorcyclist John Living, 30

 

 

“Whether you walk down the street with a gun or drive in a car, both are potentially lethal weapons and people have to be made responsible for what they do with them"

Dianne Ferreira, of road safety charity Brake, said: “An £80 fine makes a mockery of the justice system and is an insult to a gentleman who has lost his life and a family torn apart by his death."

Brigitte Chaudhry, founder of vic­tims' support group. Road Peace, added: "I can hardly believe this sen­tence. It underlines how desperate we are for a change in the law. This ruling is telling people that driving without insurance or a licence is worse than killing somebody with your car."

But a CPS spokesman insisted: "When considering the appropriate charge, it is the behaviour that is the deciding factor, whether the driving was careless or dangerous, rather than the consequences,"

Parents hit out as

death crash

driver is fined £80

 

By Jo Wllley

THE heartbroken parents of a motorcyclist hit by an unin­sured driver yesterday spoke of their devastation after the man who killed him walked free with just an £80 fine.

Marek Tomi, 23, had no driving licence or insurance when he pulled out in front of 30 year old John Living's motorbike, killing him instantly:

Road safety campaigners joined John's parents Peter and Carol in con­demning the sentence as an insult and a mockery of justice.

Mr Living, 55, said: "This man was playing Russian roulette: He gambled with my son's life and it was my son who lost. We know John would forgive the defendant, but we cannot forgive. The pain is too much.

"We knew we would not get the jus­tice we wanted, but we never expect­ed the defendant to get off this lightly. It has thrown salt into our wounds."

Mrs Living, 49, said: "We are stunned. This man will be back on the road and we're going to have to live with this pain for the rest of our lives."

Logistics manager John was killed in Margate, Kent, in October last year:

The Crown Prosecution Service decided Tomi was unlikely to be found guilty of causing death by dangerous driving and he was charged with

care­less driving instead.

Margate magistrates imposed a £100 fine, but it was later reduced to £80 because he admitted the offence.

Machine operator Tomi, of Clifftonville, near Margate, was also sentenced to 200 hours community service and banned for two years.

Now Mr and Mrs Living, of Woolwich, south-east London are campaigning for a change in the law on road deaths. Mr Living said “There has got to be a change.