Justice, of a kind- if a seven year sentence, presumably reduced for parole, compensates for killing someone.
Drunken cabbie guilty of killing cyclist (From St Albans & Harpenden Review)
A DRUNKEN taxi driver who killed a cyclist two hours after telling a work colleague he was ‘totally smashed’ has been jailed for seven years.
Simon Gatier, 41, of Salisbury Gardens, Welwyn Garden City, was found guilty of causing the death of Neil Smith by careless driving while under the influence of drink or drugs. St Albans Crown Court heard how on November 30 last year Gatier fled the accident scene, leaving three teenage boys to comfort the 43-year-old victim, who lived in Welwyn Garden City and worked at St Albans City Hospital.
Gatier, who has a previous conviction for drink-driving, lay low for three days before handing himself into police.
Judge John Plumstead said that by driving off Gatier had “behaved in a callous way and showed no remorse.”
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“He was highly thought of at St Albans hospital and they have named a corner of a garden there after him. He was sober and was smashed into as he went along the yellow lines of the road - dressed as brightly as he could be with his lights on.”
The judge went on to describe Gatier as a "thoughtless, cowardly man who was driving too quickly" in the circumstances of a wet road at night.
Friday, October 10, 2008
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1 comment:
No, not anti-car, but anti this kind of behaviour. Not only do people like this kill other people, they also make people scared to use the road for anything except driving a car.
Then you get a vicious circle of roads being more and more just for cars, instead of for everyone.
If the culture of road use could be addressed, through planning, speed limits, campaigns and so on, we would all be more likely to remember that, when we get into a car, we are about to share the road with other people, not just other cars.
Green St Albans blog
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