After the former taxi driver who caused her death was sentenced to little over four years in prison, the family of the mother who died in the horrific accident criticised the legal system.
On the day of the accident, a worried driver saw David Day, a diabetic, frequently swerving across lanes on a busy motorway in Dumfries, Scotland, and dialled 999.
In August 2020, a 54-year-old Dumfries man struck Esme Henderson’s Nissan Qashqai after veering onto the wrong side of the A75 near Eastriggs.
Mrs. Henderson, 55, of Annan, died as a result of a severe neck injury she sustained in the collision.
Bruce Henderson, her distraught husband, blasted the brief sentence, saying it left him with “no genuine comfort” and just a “sense of terrible disappointment.”
Day was given a four-month and four-year term on Wednesday at Lanark Crown Court after previously entering a guilty plea to causing death by careless driving.
‘I feel no genuine comfort from the court’s judgement, only a feeling of great disappointment,’ Mrs. Henderson’s distraught husband Bruce said on social media.
Esme was slain by David Day on her way to work little over two years ago.
On August 5, 2020, David Day, 54, of Dumfries, veered onto the wrong side of the A75 at Eastriggs, striking Esme Henderson’s (pictured), 55, of Annan, automobile. Esme Henderson subsequently died as a result of the collision.
“He was sentenced to five years and seven months in prison today at Lanark High Court, but with reductions, he will spend four years and four months,” Mr. Henderson said.
“Jail time won’t be able to undo what he has done.”
“I and my family, and her friends, will feel the shock and grief that this small little guy has inflicted and acknowledged to for a lifetime.”
The sentencing, according to Mrs. Henderson’s daughter Joanne Anderson, left her feeling “absolutely crushed.”
Her mother’s life was being subjected to “an insult,” and she went on to say that it was “another hit and kick in the teeth for my family in these horrible two years.”
It took place after other motorists were alarmed when Day was seen “weaving all over the highway.”
Day, a resident of Dalskairth, Dumfries, received a type 1 diabetes diagnosis in 2016.
However, it eventually came to light that doctors had ‘concerns’ about the way he handled his ailment.
Day was the subject of a study by an expert who concluded that, “on balance of probability,” Day had low blood sugar levels at the time of the accident.
The former cab driver received a prison term as well as a seven years, ten month driving restriction.
At the court last month, prosecutor Leanne McQuillan described how many drivers had expressed concern about Day’s driving that day.
He was driving on the M6 in the northbound direction when a witness observed him and informed police, “I don’t know whether he is intoxicated, half asleep, or experiencing medical troubles.”
Then, when Day entered the A75, several motorists observed him, including one who had to avoid being hit.
Niall Anderson, a second driver, was behind Day and saw him veer to the other side of the street.
He struck the approaching vehicle head-on, according to Miss McQuillan. Esme Henderson was the driver of this Nissan Qashqai.
Day was said to have avoided the collision by making “absolutely no reflexes.”
Mrs. Henderson passed away after sustaining several wounds. Day was injured as well and required airlifting to the hospital.
In response to questions from police in February 2021, he said: “I am aware I was engaged in a tragic road traffic crash.”
I don’t remember this at all, or the trip before it.
Day’s medical background was disclosed to Lord Beckett by Miss McQullian.
This includes many hypoglycemic (low blood sugar) events that were previously documented.
Day’s “compliance” with controlling his diabetes, however, was “varying,” according to Miss McQuillan.
However, since his blood sugar level had not been measured before to the accident, it was impossible to determine what it was.
The driver exhibited “real sadness and regret,” according to Day’s QC, for what had transpired.
The husband of Mrs. Henderson thanked everyone who has supported him and his family over the last two years in a recent Facebook post.
It was very valued and won’t be forgotten, he wrote.
Please keep Esme in your thoughts and recall the joy she brought into our lives. Rest in peace, my lovely daughter.