rememberingfergy

Reported 27th June 2008

A Limavady man has been jailed for five-and-a-half-years for two counts of causing death by dangerous driving.
Mark Ellis, 20, of Josephine Avenue was also fined £1,000 for driving without insurance.
Ellis was found guilty at Antrim Crown Court last month of killing Margaret Chivers, 85, and his friend, Adam Montague
He had been driving along the Cam Road close to Macosquin on 6 August 2006 when he lost control of his car.
The black Peugot 206 he was driving careered into a lamp-post, breaking it in two, before ploughing head-on into a Ford Ka driven by Mrs Chivers's daughter, Ethna.
Mrs Chivers died the same day, but Mr Montague, who had been in the front passenger seat, died 10 days later.
The jury heard that, despite Ellis being a restricted driver at the time of the crash and therefore limited to a maximum speed of 45mph, he told police he had been driving at around 60mph going into the left-hand bend where he lost control.
He claimed that "something was not right" with the road and that "it may have been greasy".
However, a Crown lawyer said: "We say what wasn't right was that he was driving too hard and too fast for the driving conditions."
Ellis's jail term will be followed by 18 months on probation.

The Ulster Political Research Group's Regional Secretary and Political Sokesperson David Malcolm from Derry, Who's own Nephew was also killed by a Drunk Driver in England in 2006 Criticised the sentence "My heart goes out to the Chivers and Montague families today. It is not the fault of the Judiciary in cases like this, it is the Home Secretary who sets sentencing tarrifs and all too often, they make that decision based on how full the Prison system is rather than the seriousness of the crime. I will continue to call for tougher sentencing for Drink Drivers. Its a shocking inditement, but Mr Ellis's sentence would have been much tougher if his car was not taxed! Thats how much Government values Life on the UK Roads.
In my own family's case, the offender served just 12 months before being accepted for transfer to Open Prison conditions and now spends 4 days and nights a week living in the community rather than in prison where he belongs!

What message of deterence does the light sentences send out to repeat offenders? I would advise the Victims families to appeal the leniency of this sentence - Justice was not served in Antrim today. " he said
From BBC Website

Another Failure of The Bail Act ! - 5th October 2007

rememberingfergy is saddened to have to report that yet again, the Government has allowed the current conditions set out within the Bail Act to fail another innocent Motorist killed on our roads - and their family.

On the 2nd of August 2007, 18 year old Nathan Matthews was sat at a set of traffic lights on his Motorbike in Loughborough. Two cars being driven by 17 year olds ploughed into him at around 95mph fatally injuring him. Despite overwhelming evidence of dangerous driving and ridiculous speeds, neither driver had an IDD (Interim driving Disqualification) issued as part of their Bail Conditions.

Commenting, Dave malcolm said "Yet again another innocent young person killed by dangerous driving, and it is the bereaved family who have to watch the killers carry on driving for the next 10 months or so! - The whole system is wrong and totally biased against those who are left to seek justice for the innocent. Nathan's Mother told our Carl's Mum that a couple of days after Nathan was killed, one of the drivers had another car and was bragging to his mates that he had already had 120mph out of it! - I mean come on! how much longer are the Government going to remain inactive on this issue? I have informed Jim Fitzpatrick MP who took over from Dr Stephen Ladyman MP as Minister for State with responsibility for road safety of this incident and asked him to ensure that every Police Force utilise the Bail Act - We at rememberingfergy will offer what support we can to Nathan's family and will assist in any way we can as they both struggle to come to terms with their loss, and as they fight for justice"

Mr Jim Fitzpatrick MP
Transport Minister with
responsibility for
Road Safety

Institute advocated Interim Ban in 1998!

Carl's Uncle - Dave Malcolm has revealed his shock at learning that the Institute of Alcohol Studies have long advocated Immediate Interim Driving Bans to be issued to all drivers who fail breath tests for at least the last 10 years and his disgust that the British Government ignored those recomendations.
In May 1998, The Institute published response document to the Government's consultation "Drink Driving - The Next Steps" where they said:-
"We have for long advocated the immediate suspension of the licence
both in order to emphasise the seriousness of this road offence and to
prevent further offending due to the length of time elapsing before
cases can come to trial. Some awaiting trial re-offend with more
serious consequences - causing injury or fatality to others. If the
Government is not prepared to permit immediate suspension then its
priority, in the interests of innocent road users, must be to speed up
the court process."
"I was researching issues relating to our campaign just last night when I came accross this document and my jaw nearly hit the floor - I couldn't believe that despite the Department of Transport's Stephen Ladyman's assurances that we have valid points and these could be looked at in November's review of Road Safety, here we have proof that the Government has already looked at the issue nine years ago, and dismissed it!" Dave Said.

"What message does that send out to familie's like ours who have had their loved ones killed by Drink Drivers? ALL those deaths from 1998 and the Government did nothing, All that research and work carried out by the Institute for Alcohol Studies and the Government just toss it aside - what does that say to the public who have to share the roads with people unfit to drive because they are drunk?

I believe the blood of every victim is firmly on the hands of all those politicians who sat back and did nothing. I believe the Government has failed in its duty of care to legal road users. Fergy, Carl Blackburn and all those people who were killed by drink drivers since 1998 could have been saved had the Government acted on sound professional advice, but they just ignored it whether because of financial constraints or otherwise. Jamie Crozier was a repeat offender yet they allowed him just to pick up where he left off after his first ban for Drink driving. This is a serious issue and the country as a whole need to wake up and realise that every time they go on the roads be it driving their car, sitting on a bus or in a taxi - there are people who have killed others through drink driving who have not been to court and who could still be getting drunk and still driving! - I have to say yet again - what does it say for the state of our Laws when the Government will crush your car for not paying your tax, yet it will allow a drunk driver who has killed to carry on driving for up to a year on average before they will take them off the roads? its disgusting and they (The Government) should be ashamed of their inaction" Dave concluded

Dave Malcolm
Campaign4Carl

Dr Stephen Ladyman MP
Minister for State - Transport

Another Young Man Killed by Drunk Driver!

We - here at rememberingfergy are saddened to learn of the death of Pontefract man Carl Blackburn. In circumstances frightningly similar to our Carl's Death, Carl Blackburn was a passenger in a car being driven by someone who was found to be well above the legal drink drive limit. The fact that the driver has been released immediately on Police Bail - without the possibility of an Interim Driving Ban being imposed, shows tragically that the conditions of the Bail Act 1976 that Government Ministers keep ramming down our throat have failed yet again to protect the public at large, and the driver who killed young Carl Blackburn is free to drive on public roads for the next year or so until the CPS bring him, before a magistrate. We are commited to re-doubling our efforts to make sure that every driver caught drink driving is taken off the roads immediately, and offer our sincere condolences to Carl's Mother Violet, his Father Stephen, sister Stacey and the entire Blackburn family circle, and promise not to rest until the law is changed Government is playing Russian Roulette with road users lives and it must stop NOW!.

21 Year old Carl Blackburn
Pic (c) P&C Express 2007

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Killer Released!

Drink Drive Killer Jamie Crozier has been released from Prison on licence.

He was released last month (Feb 09) and as part of his Licence conditions, is not allowed into the town of Pontefract. He also has 3 years of a Driving Ban still left to serve. We have also learned that the night before sentence was passed at Leeds Crown Court, Crozier and his work colleagues had a "Going Away" Party! that involved a Pub Crawl - obviously the Remorse his Solicitor said at his trial that Crozier was suffering and the nightmares etc had ceased for that night! Crozier has also been telling people that his employers were going to re-employ him after his release. Shame on them! I would hope the good citizens of the Five Towns area will do all in their power to legally ensure that Crozier adheres to the terms of his license FULLY and that if he breaches any part of his Licence, that the details are passed to the Police immediately.