MP IN CALL FOR ‘SHARLOTTE’S LAW’
Plea comes during Commons debate
STOKE-ON-TRENT North MP Jonathan Gullis last night called for a change in the law in memory of tragic schoolgirl Sharlotte-sky Naglis.
Mr Gullis, speaking in a Commons debate, said ‘Sharlotte’s Law’ was needed in order to make sure other families did not suffer the protracted anguish that Sharlotte’s suffered while waiting for her killer to be brought to justice.
John Owen, 45, knocked down and killed Sharlotte, six, as she walked along the pavement in Norton Green with her father, Kris, in June last year.
Owen had been drinking, taking cocaine, and using a mobile phone before the impact that killed Sharlotte instantly.
But because Owen was in a coma for some time after the crash, blood samples that were taken could not be analysed without his consent.
That, Mr Gullis said, added to the despair felt by Sharlotte’s mum Claire Reynolds and her wider family.
Not only had they lost their little girl, but they were forced to wait until, once Owen had recovered, he agreed to the blood samples being analysed. Owen, of The Square, Oakamoor, was speeding, was almost twice over the drink-drive limit, had taken cocaine, was using his mobile phone around the time of the crash and was not wearing a seatbelt.
He was jailed for six years and four months after pleading guilty on the day of his trial.
Mr Gullis told the Commons: “(John Owen) caused much distress by prolonging the investigation into Sharlotte’s death, and exploited, in my opinion, loopholes in our justice system. “He was in a coma when the investigation began.
“Legally, a blood sample can be taken without consent, but cannot be subject to a test until consent is given.
“Therefore, in a situation like this, the investigation is delayed until consent is received.”
Mr Gullis, who struggled to hold back his emotions when he spoke of Sharlotte’s family’s tireless campaign for justice and the impact her death had on the community, said the law needed to change in order to remove this requirement for consent in such circumstances.
Sharlotte’s mum Claire and Sharlotte’s grandfather were in the gallery to watch the House of Commons debate unfold.
The Sentinel revealed yesterday that The justice secretary and deputy prime minister, Dominic Raab, has agreed to meet Sharlottesky’s mum to discuss John Owen’s sentence.
It comes after MP Jonathan Gullis raised the case in Parliament on Tuesday ahead of the televised adjournment debate about the sentence which took place last night.
■ See tomorrow’s Sentinel for reaction and analysis.