The Courier & Advertiser (Angus and Dundee)
Sentencing explained
Sir, - You reported (August 22) the comments of Mrs Nataliya Solska, wife of Witold Solski who was killed in an accident involving a lorry driven by Glenn Craib.
Mr Craib pleaded guilty to causing death by careless driving and was sentenced to 250 hours’ community service and disqualified from driving for 30 months.
Mrs Solska complains Mr Craib did not receive a custodial sentence. She is further reported as questioning whether a prison sentence was not imposed because her husband was originally from Poland. The judge, John Morris QC, is quoted as saying Mr Craib’s carelessness was “at the lower end of the scale”.
One must have a great deal of sympathy for Mrs Solska. To lose a relative in an unexpected accident is devastating as I myself know, my mother having been killed in a plane crash.
The crime of causing death by careless driving was introduced relatively recently. Before that there was only the offence of careless driving. The consequences of the carelessness were not considered to be relevant.
The offence of careless driving did not carry a prison sentence, only a fine. In my 30-odd years as a sheriff I dealt with many cases of careless driving. I considered, as I think did the majority of my colleagues, that the sentence imposed should reflect the quality of the driving and not the outcome.
The politicians who introduced the offence of causing death by careless driving thought otherwise.
I have little doubt they felt driven by the very vocal lobby of those who had lost relatives who, quite understandably, felt a strong sense of grievance and who were seeking revenge rather than justice.
Judge Morris is a very experienced and respected judge. Mrs Solska does him a grave injustice when she suggests that his sentence was influenced by some sort of racial prejudice.
The sentence imposed is towards the top end of the spectrum of community service despite the judge considering that the standard of driving was at the lower end of the scale. Alastair L Stewart. 86 Albany Road, Broughty Ferry.