Woman spared jail following death of Jersey driver

Wednesday 07 February 2018

A 40-year-old woman has been sentenced to 10 months in prison, suspended for 18 months, after a 69-year-old driver from Jersey died after swerving to avoid a mattress which had fallen from her car.

Rebecca Miller was moving homes in January 2017 when the mattress she was carrying on top of her car fell off, hitting Clive Mauger's car - which then went off the road and collided with a tree.

She was charged with causing death by dangerous driving but she pleaded guilty to the alternative charge of causing death by careless driving. 

KentOnline has now reported that Ms Miller's 10-month prison sentence will be suspended for 18 months. Maidstone Crown Court also ordered her to carry out 250 hours of unpaid work.

She has also been disqualified for two years and will have to take a test before her licence can be returned. She was ordered to pay £1,200 within three months and will have to observe a curfew from 19:00 to 07:00 for the next four months. 

Judge Julian Smith told Ms Miller: “There is no question of oppressive driving that puts people at risk. But it was a bad idea and concept - profoundly bad - and it was a bad idea compounded by the distance you drove.

“No sentence or punishment can address the pain or loss suffered by Mr Mauger’s family. The sentence that must follow such a tragic event cannot be a measure of his life.”