June Mills, 96, pleaded guilty to causing the death of Brenda Joyce, 76, in Formby in August last year. Her lawyer said “the accelerator pedal fell down beneath her foot, she panicked and failed to react”.
A 96-year-old has been given a suspended prison sentence after pleading guilty to causing the death of a woman by dangerous driving.
June Mills, from Ainsdale on Merseyside was handed an 18-month suspended sentence at Liverpool Crown Court on Monday.
She pleaded guilty to causing the death of Brenda Joyce, 76, in Formby in August last year, after hitting the woman and another pedestrian when her car mounted the pavement.
Mills is thought to be one of the oldest people in the UK to be convicted of death by dangerous driving.
Sentencing her, Judge Simon Medland KC said: “On any view and from every angle this case is an utter tragedy.
“Mrs Joyce died, Mrs Ensor was injured, you have lost your good character and are in the dock of Liverpool Crown Court.”
Tom Gent, defending, said: “This is plainly a dreadfully sad case. Mrs Mills, the defendant, is extremely sorry for what happened.
“The consequences will haunt her forever. She feels great shame and guilt.”
Mr Gent then told the court Mills surrendered her driving licence following the crash, added she was previously involved in charity work for victims of crime and young offenders, and “she has housed, and continues to house, Ukrainian refugees”.
The court heard last month that Mills mounted the kerb because she applied too much accelerator while driving her Vauxhall Corsa, and that she accepted her driving was below the normal standard.
Mr Gent said at the time: “The accelerator pedal fell down beneath her foot, she panicked and failed to react to that.”
He added her mobility had worsened since the collision, noting she was only able to walk a few paces and would be unlikely to be fit to carry out unpaid work.
Mrs Joyce was pronounced dead at the scene on Elbow Lane in Formby. The other pedestrian hit by Mills – Jennifer Ensor, an 80-year-old woman – suffered slight injuries.
Ms Ensor told the court she suffered tendon damage which prevented her from playing a full round of golf, and felt a “sense of guilt” at having survived the incident.
Judge Medland explained the suspended 18-month sentence on Monday, saying: “Bearing in mind the imposition guidelines, the pre-sentence reports, the abundance of references and, if I might add, plain common sense, it would not profit anybody to make that an immediate sentence, nor would that be a just outcome.”
Mills was also ordered to pay a £1,500 fine as well as £500 in prosecution costs, and was disqualified from driving for five years.
