HIGH COURT Killer driver is jailed six years over tot’s death
A grieving Perthshire mum wept outside court this week after the driver who ran over her two-year-old child was jailed for six years.
Sara Edwards – whose daughter Harlow died in the crash in Coupar Angus last October – said:“Justice has finally been done. We would like to thank everyone involved in making that happen.
“Although we are glad that a substantial sentence has been given, we would like to say that this in no way matches the life sentence we are now living and the life that has been denied to our precious Harlow.
“We can only hope our baby girl’s beautiful face will serve as a reminder of the responsibility that comes with getting behind the wheel of a car and also the dangers of speeding and distraction to drivers, passengers and the person on the other end of the phone who continues to communicate with someone they know is driving. As a family, going forward, we would now like to concentrate on honouring the absolute love and never-ending joy our darling baby girl brought into our lives through the charity Harlow’s Helping Hand.”
Earlier, at the High Court in Glasgow, killer driver Luke Pirie also broke down in tears as he was sentenced for running down Harlow as she held hands with her sister and a pal.
Pirie (24), smashed his speeding Ford Focus into another car while trying to overtake – then hit Harlow, her sister Dionne and a six-year-old boy who were standing on the pavement.
Harlow died instantly while Dionne, now 18, and the lad were both thrown over a wall in Coupar Angus on October 13 last year.
At the High Court in Edinburgh last month, Pirie pleaded guilty to causing death by dangerous driving. Sentencing him to six years in prison on Wednesday, Judge Lord Ericht said:“Because of what you did, Harlow will never return home.”
Pirie was seen speeding through Coupar Angus and had used his mobile for calls, texts and Facetime before the 50mph crash.
Lord Ericht told him: “You have shattered the life of a family. For them, nothing will ever be the same.
“On October 13, 2016,
Luke Pirie you indulged in a prolonged, persistent and deliberate course of very bad driving.
“You sent and read images and text messages. You were engaged in activity on a mobile phone that required you to give attention to the device.”
The judge also banned Pirie from driving for seven years and ordered him to sit an extended test if he ever wants to drive again.
CCTV showed the Ford Focus speeding behind a line of traffic moments before the crash. The cars in front had slowed as a Citroen signalled to turn right.
But Pirie pulled out and tried to overtake the traffic, colliding with the Citroen at around 50mph as it began to turn.
Pirie lost control of his car, which spun and mounted the pavement where the children were walking after getting off a bus from Dundee.
Pirie had passed his driving test just a year before and was said to be “worked up”and angry on the day of the crash as he left his work at Scone Airport, near Perth, to travel to his partner’s house in Montrose.
Mark Stewart QC, defending, said his client believed the line of cars was stationary when he tried to overtake and he felt“severe regret”, guilt and remorse over the incident.
Mr Stewart said:“Mr Pirie accepts that his driving was impaired and he accepts that it was his decision to overtake what he genuinely believed to be a line of stationary cars that led to this terrible event.”
The court also heard that Pirie has previous convictions for violence and disorder and was on bail, serving a community payback order, when the fatal crash happened.
Harlow’s family launched a charity, Harlow’s Helping Hand, in her memory.
It aims to help bereaved parents who have lost a young child by providing support for funeral and headstone costs.