Family ‘broken’ by mother’s death as killer driver jailed
ADRIVER who killed a grandmother when he pulled out of a petrol station into the path of a motorbike robbed her family of “another 30 Christmases”.
The devastated daughter of Ray Jones said her life had been “ripped apart” by the fatal crash.
Ray Jones, 50, was out with her husband celebrating their forthcoming wedding anniversary when she died.
The crash, in Blaenavon on September 17 last year, saw John Morgan’s Volvo C70 hit a Kawasaki motorbike ridden by Brian Jones, with his wife Mrs Jones sitting as a passenger.
The victim’s family – who a judge described as “left broken” by the tragedy – said Morgan “dragged” them through the court after changing his plea to guilty on the third day of his trial last month.
Morgan, 47, was sentenced at Cardiff Crown Court yesterday to four years in prison and was disqualified from driving for six years.
During the hearing a statement was read out on behalf of Mrs Jones’ daughter Katie.
It read: “My whole life was ripped apart at 8.50pm on September 17, 2016, when I had the worst phone call I’ve ever received from my dad.
“All I heard was, ‘There’s been an accident’ and, ‘We are outside Blaenavon fire station’.
“I asked where Mam was and I was told she was ‘being looked after’.
“I asked if I could see her and was told, ‘Not yet – she is being taken care of’.”
In the statement Katie explained
that even though she hadn’t been told her mother had died, she knew – and worried how she would break the news to her brother, her grandmother and her children.
Devastated Katie said this Christmas will be “a joke”.
“Another 30 Christmases with her husband, children and grandchildren taken from her. Taken from us.
“Being a mum is so hard without my mum. I need you here just to check that I’m doing things properly.”
A trial at Newport Crown Court heard how the crash occurred near a petrol station on the B4246 Abergavenny Road in Blaenavon just after 8pm on September 17 last year.
Mrs Jones went into cardiac arrest after the crash and was pronounced dead at the scene, with a post-mortem examination revealing she died of head injuries.
In his first police interview Morgan, of Ton-Mawr Street, Blaenavon, told officers: “All I can say is I didn’t see the bike.”
When questioned about why he did not stop, he replied he acted “out of complacency”, adding: “I accept 100% I should have brought that car to a stop.”
Concluding the case, Judge Tom Crowther said the death of Mrs Jones was caused by “dangerous driving”.
He said: “There is just nothing [Mr Jones] could have done to prevent it.
“Mrs Jones was just 50 when she died and she was the centre of the family. “The family has been left broken.” The family of Mrs Jones also released a joint statement following the hearing.
They said: “Since the incident last September the person, namely John Morgan, has caused significant heartache to our family.
“Not only has he caused the death of our beautiful Ray, he has dragged us through court and showed no remorse whatsoever until the final moments of the trial.
“The sentence that has been given today will have no impact on his life whereas we have been left with a life without Ray.
“We are relieved that the CCTV has been released and shows everyone that there was clearly only one man’s actions at fault.
“We would like to thank the witnesses and would like to thank the police for their hard work and support.”
Leighton Mawer, from the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), said: “By presenting eyewitness accounts, collision investigation experts and CCTV, the CPS was able to portray clear evidence of the standard of Morgan’s driving.
“The prosecution case was that his manoeuvre was dangerous and the strength of evidence presented resulted in a guilty plea. Morgan’s driving that evening had tragic consequences.
“We hope that Mr Jones and his family find some comfort in the conclusion of the case and our thoughts and sympathies are with them.”