Driver gets 2yrs after mum-to-be lost baby and was left crippled by crash

A DRIVER who ran over a pregnant woman who lost her unborn child has been jailed for two years.

Darren Morrison was last month convicted of mowing down Julie Welsh, 40, in Glasgow in December 2020.

Ms Welsh’s legs had to be amputated below the knee. She was left severely brain damaged and needs round-the-clock care.

Morrison, 20, from Glasgow, had denied causing serious injury by dangerous driving but last month a jury at the city’s sheriff court found him guilty following a threeday trial.

Yesterday, Morrison returned to court to face sentencing by Sheriff Joan Kerr.

She told him: ‘Julie Welsh was unable to participate in the trial but her family provided victim impact statements. They make it plain that life as she knew it as an active young mum is over. Her family and her young child have lost her to society. The only appropriate sentence to reflect the gravity of the offence and the harm caused by you is a custodial one.

‘I can protect the public from you driving again by disqualifying you for eight years.’

Morrison will need to pass an extended test before applying for his licence again.

Witness Graham Robertson, 44, told the trail that the car was ‘going quite fast’ when it struck Ms Welsh. He said: ‘I would say from where she crossed the road, she was one metre from the kerb on the other side of the road to complete her journey.

‘She came off the left passenger side windscreen and she ended up further back on the road she was walking on impact.’

The support worker went to Ms Welsh’s aid until emergency services arrived. He said: ‘I thought she was dead. I heard rasping breaths, she was in a bad, bad way.

‘Until the point I heard her making noises, she was lying in a distorted way. She was making choking noises.’ Morrison, his girlfriend and two other friends were on their way to his house to watch boxing.

In his evidence, Morrison claimed: couldn’t have done anything differently.’

Ms Welsh suffered a traumatic head injury, a fractured top rib, a broken arm and extensive lower leg and pelvic injuries. She also had to have bone temporarily removed from her skull to stop a brain bleed.

She has severe brain damage, is blind in one eye, has no awareness of her external surroundings and cannot communicate.

The mother of one requires medical assistance to breathe and is fed through a tube. Her condition is unlikely to improve.

Ian Sievwright, defending, said: ‘He asked me to express his contrition, his remorse and understanding of the harm that this tragic event has caused Julie Welsh and her extended family. Nothing I or my client can say will compensate for Julie Welsh’s situation or the harm and distress caused.’ ‘I