Speeding sentences 'not a big enough deterrent'
BBCA mother is calling for tougher sentences for those caught speeding after the death of her son.
Ben Law, who was 22 and from Wigton, Cumbria, was a passenger in a car being driven by Shaun Hillary, which crashed into a milk tanker in 2021.
Hillary was jailed for nine months in 2023 after being convicted of causing death by careless driving and given a 30-month driving ban, a sentence criticised by Ben's mother Sarah Donnelly, who said: "If you think you can take a life and just get nine months, it's not a big enough deterrent."
The Ministry for Justice (MoJ) said the government had announced its "intention to publish a new road safety strategy, the first in over a decade".
Ms Donnelly said her life "will never be the same again" following the death of her son.
"There's just a big hole that will never be filled," she said.
She warned other drivers not to speed, adding: "When you get behind the wheel of a car, that car can be a lethal weapon and in Ben's case it was."
Family handoutA BBC Radio Cumbria investigation found 249 people were killed or seriously injured on Cumbria's roads last year, 82 of which were linked to speeding.
One Cumbria Police yellow speed van technician interviewed said people were caught driving at 60, 65 or 70mph in 30mph zones.
A Freedom of Information request to the force found some of the highest recorded speeds between 2019 and 2023 were on stretches of the M6 and on the A66.
One driver was caught travelling on the dual carriageway near Temple Sowerby at 133mph.
Insp Jack Stabler, a roads policing inspector at Cumbria Police, said it was "concerning".
"Speeding is an issue in Cumbria," he said.
"There's a debate about whether more people are speeding or if more people are being caught speeding."
In 2024, more than 23,000 drivers in Cumbria were eligible for speed awareness courses but almost 7,000 declined, taking the points and fine instead.
Insp Stabler said it was "worrying that people are avoiding education around speeding".
"You walk out of court with a high fine, what's stopping that person from speeding again?
"Education would be the preferred route from Cumbria Police."
While judges decide sentences based on the facts of each case, the maximum penalty for death by careless driving is five years and death by careless driving under the influence is life imprisonment.
An MoJ spokesperson added: "This was a terrible crime and our thoughts remain with the family and friends of Ben Law. Dangerous driving destroys lives.
"Reducing those killed and injured on our roads is a key priority, and that is why we have announced our intention to publish a new road safety strategy, the first in over a decade.''