The punishment of a distracted motorist who plowed into a pram and killed an 18-day-old infant has been raised to ten years in jail.
James Davis, 35, ran over infant Ciaran Leigh Morris on Brownhills High Street, close to Walsall, before he sprang from his white BMW 1 Series 116d.
On Easter Sunday of last year, he struck a Ford B-Max, climbed the pavement on the opposite side of the street, and then struck the child.
For causing death by hazardous driving and causing death by operating a vehicle without insurance, Davis was sentenced to six and a half years in prison in April at Wolverhampton Crown Court.
However, the Attorney General’s Office under the “unduly lenient” punishment procedure referred that sentence to the Court of Appeal.
Davis was present via video connection from HMP Birmingham for the hearing when judges doubled his sentence to 10 years.
For the Attorney General, Oliver Glasgow QC contended that the sentencing judge had improperly ignored several elements that raised the gravity of the offence, such as Davis’ accelerated pace and his cannabis usage.
He told the court: ‘Not only did (Davis) not have insurance, the car itself had not been registered, it was a car that should not have been on the road.’
Mr. Glasgow reported that, 16.5 seconds before to the fatal collision, Davis was traveling at 67 mph. As he neared a roundabout, he slowed to 33 mph.
Later, Davis crossed over to the other side of the street, into the oncoming lane, and into the path of a vehicle.
In addition to lacking insurance, Mr. Glasgow stated, “Davis’ automobile was also not registered and wasn’t legally allowed to be on the road.”
Davis stated during his trial that he briefly lost consciousness due to a coughing attack.
For Davis, Charles Crinion contended that the trial’s judge, John Butterfield QC, was “ideally qualified” to assess the gravity of the occurrence and had been “careful” throughout the proceedings.
Additionally, Mr. Crinion testified in court that he was following the speed limit when the incident occurred, adding that his earlier speed “was very closely associated (with) but was not the cause” of the tragic accident.
As they handed down their ruling, Lady Justice Carr, sitting with Mr. Justice Fraser and Judge Deborah Taylor, paid respect to Ciaran and his family.
We note at the beginning that no punishment can return Ciaran to his family, she stated.
They increased Davis’ sentence after finding that the trial judge had fallen into error.
Lady Justice Carr added: ‘A term of around seven years should have been the platform from which to consider additional aggravating and mitigating factors.
‘We consider there were multiple significant additional factors… A custodial term of 10 years was warranted.’
Suella Braverman, the attorney general, expressed her appreciation for Davis’ longer sentence today.
After the decision, she stated, “Today, my sympathies are with the family of Ciaran Morris, who unfortunately died as a result of James Davis’ criminally reckless driving.
“While no punishment will undo the harm Davis’s acts caused, I applaud the court’s decision to impose a term that more accurately represents the awful offense that has occurred.”
After the collision, Davis ran away to his girlfriend’s Bloxwich house, where he stayed for almost 40 minutes before calling the police.
When he was arrested, he told officers he had gone to see his two-year-old daughter.
Police bodycam footage played at the trial showed Davis telling PC Tom Rust as he was arrested: ‘A baby, f***s sake. I’m sorry bab. I blacked out, I was doing 20mph.
‘I weren’t even speeding or nothing. I blacked out. I ain’t killed no one on purpose. F***ing hell man.
‘I accept I’m going to prison if somebody’s died… People were screaming “I killed a baby” so I just wanted to see my baby before I go.’
The court also heard Davis had 27 previous convictions including drink-driving, drug dealing and driving without insurance.