Courts are too soft in sentencing killer drivers

SOFT sentences given to killer-drivers are rightly criticised by Malcolm Wright (Yorkshire Post, December 1) who told of the woman who killed another motorist while overtaking across a solid white line; and this after being allowed to continue driving after getting four speeding convictions.

Only last week, a Bradford man was given three years in prison for driving on to a roundabout while texting on his phone, in the dark at 10.30pm, and hitting a motor-cyclist who died 18 days later in hospital. He will probably be back out in 18 months.

Earlier this year, a banned motorist was driving a stolen car which collided with two other cars, four days after he was given a suspended sentence “because he had indicated to a probation officer that he wanted to change”. His driving record included 81 offences and 34 court appearances. He was given 22 months in jail with a two-year driving ban.

Last week, an actor in a TV soap was given three points for speeding, taking his total to 12 points and also a short driving-ban. The usual mitigating noises surfaced about the disruption to his work and private life.

The roads are filled with drivers that just seem to disregard both the rules and other road-users.

As Malcolm Wright suggests, the penalties for serious road and continual traffic violations should be substantially increased in order to hit “the lawless minority” much harder.

From: Roger M Dobson, Ash Street, Crosshills, Keighley.

WHAT is wrong these days with the magistracy with regard to sentencing serious motoring offences? A motorcyclist caught speeding in York on a road (Yorkshire Post, December 20) that was limited to 60mph at 116mph was fined not too heavily and banned from driving for three months.

In reality, this senseless motorcyclist should have been fined the maximum of £1,000 and banned from driving for at least 12 months, plus paying the costs applicable.

The Selby magistrate who sentenced this man were doing nothing to keep the peace and should be retrained in sentencing.