Woman deliberately drove into boy, 14

YOUNGSTER WAS THROWN INTO AIR AND OVER RAILINGS

A PREGNANT woman has been sentenced for deliberately driving her car into a 14-year-old boy, hurtling him into the air – apparently because he threw a snowball at her car.

Driver Terri Mortiboy, 26, of Larch Close, Hucknall, pleaded guilty to attempting to cause grievous bodily harm.

Judge Stuart Rafferty QC gave her a two-year suspended prison sentence with a two-year community order and 15 rehabilitation activity days when she appeared at Nottingham Crown Court.

Mortiboy – who is now six months pregnant – had already been disqualified from driving before the incident. Her licence will be endorsed for offences of driving otherwise in accordance with a licence; no insurance; failing to stop after an accident and failing to report an accident.

Six penalty points will be added for not having insurance.

She drove into the boy on December 10, 2018, around High Street and Co-operative Street, Stanton Hill, Sutton-in-ashfield, where he was with friends throwing snowballs.

A shopkeeper was heard to say “she’s back, she said she was ‘going to come down and run them over’”, the court heard yesterday. Mortiboy had been in the area before the incident.

The court heard she may have been one of the motorists whose vehicles were hit by snowballs thrown by the children. “She left and deliberately came back,” said Abi Joyce, prosecuting.

Mortiboy appeared to reverse her VW Passat and turn to face youngsters, driving across the road on the wrong side at speed towards them.

The car appeared to skid up on to the pavement and the youngsters jumped out of the way, apart from the 14-year-old.

He was thrown into the air, appeared to somersault, landing over railings in a grassed area and was heard crying out in pain.

Mortiboy left the scene. The teenager was helped by his friends and taken to hospital, where nothing was found to be broken.

He had a large bruise and pain, and described in a victim impact statement having nightmares and waking up crying afterwards.

Mortiboy abandoned the car in Welbeck Square but was traced by police.

She denied she had deliberately driven at the group but text messages revealed otherwise. One read: “What if he dies?” – but she claimed she was referring to her dog, which had been recently ill. D a w n Pritchard, mitigating, said that Mortiboy had a borderline personality disorder. She also has asthma and epileptic seizures. Miss Pritchard said: “Her plea was entered on the basis this was deliberate. She doesn’t really know what possessed her that day. Perhaps the stress of too many things overcame her.”

The judge said he had taken all her difficulties into account when passing sentence.

She doesn’t really know what possessed her that day.

Dawn Pritchard. mitigating