Mom killed by drunk son reversing car

Published Feb 5, 2013

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London -

A teenage learner driver who accidentally reversed into his mother and killed her as she begged him not to drink and drive was jailed for a year on Monday.

Lewis Foster, 19, arrived home drunk after a row with work colleagues and got behind the wheel of his car, despite having no licence or insurance.

Deborah Jones, 47, followed him to the Citroen Saxo she had bought for him for Christmas and begged him not to drive because it would “ruin everything” if he was caught.

But as he revved the engine, the car jerked backwards, crushing her against a fence post under the wheels, a court heard. Foster, who was 18 at the time, was later found to be nearly twice the drink drive limit. He admitted causing death by driving carelessly under the influence of alcohol and driving without insurance.

Sentencing Foster to a year in a young offenders’ institute, Judge David Ticehurst said: “There is no escape of the fact that this is a tragic case with a tragic result for everyone involved.

“You will carry the burden that you killed your mother by your careless driving for the rest of your life.

“Nothing that I say or do could add to the sense of guilt that you feel and that you will always feel.”

Earlier, Piers Norsworthy, defending, said any punishment was insignificant compared to a “lifetime of mental torture”.

He added: “He is a decent young man who has not always had the best start in his life.

“But he certainly loved his mother very dearly as she did him.”

Truro Crown Court heard that on the night of the incident in July 2012, Mrs Jones, had seen him in the pub and the pair began arguing when he arrived home.

Foster told her he wanted to leave the area but she begged him not to go, and walked round to the back of the vehicle.

After the accident, a friend tried to move the car. Mrs Jones was rushed to hospital but died from her injuries the next day.

After his arrest, Foster failed a breath test, showing 64mg of alcohol, nearly twice the legal limit of 35mg.

Foster, of St Austell, Cornwall, was also disqualified from driving for four years. - Daily Mail

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