A lorry driver convicted of causing death by dangerous driving has been sentenced to 6 years in prison at Norwich crown court. I cant get the link to load on but look at Norfolk and Suffolk News | Eastern Daily Press.
A47 fatal crash lorry driver jailed for six years
A lorry driver who killed a woman in a six vehicle crash on the A47 in Norfolk has been jailed for six years.
Simon Bothamley, 34, of Sergeants Close, Ramsey, Cambridgeshire, was also given a five-year driving ban after being found guilty at Norwich Crown Court of dangerous driving.
Car passenger Elizabeth Bird, 52, of Leighton Buzzard, received fatal injuries as a result of the crash.
The accident happened on the A47 at Trowse, Norfolk, on 10 July last year.
Norwich Crown Court was told that Bothamley had been caught using his mobile phone while driving his lorry two months earlier.
Norfolk Police said when they arrived on the scene of the crash it was “like a scene out of a film” and that it was remarkable that only one person was killed.
Bothamley was found guilty of dangerous driving at Norwich Crown Court on 25 August and sentenced on Tuesday.
Bothamley had been driving a DAF heavy goods lorry on the A47 in the early afternoon of 10 July 2010 when, close to the A146 slip road at Trowse, he was in collision with a line of slow moving traffic.
The lorry first collided with a Ford Mondeo, before then hitting three of the other vehicles involved including another Ford Mondeo, a BMW 320d and a Land Rover Discovery.
Mrs Bird was a front seat passenger in the first Ford Mondeo.
PC Chris Tremlin, of Norfolk Police - who attended the scene moments after the collision, described the scene as “utter carnage and devastation - it was like the scene out of a film”.
He added, “I have attended numerous serious and fatal road collisions over the years and without a doubt this was one of the most horrendous scenes my colleagues and I have witnessed.”
Mrs Bird’s family issued a statement saying: "Liz was a wonderful and remarkable woman who was deeply loved by all our family and friends.
“We take some comfort in that her life, though too short, was one of huge achievement and fulfilment. Her legacy lives on in her children, her work at the Open University and the community in which we live.”
tachograph:
A47 fatal crash lorry driver jailed for six yearsA lorry driver who killed a woman in a six vehicle crash on the A47 in Norfolk has been jailed for six years.
Simon Bothamley, 34, of Sergeants Close, Ramsey, Cambridgeshire, was also given a five-year driving ban after being found guilty at Norwich Crown Court of dangerous driving.
Car passenger Elizabeth Bird, 52, of Leighton Buzzard, received fatal injuries as a result of the crash.
The accident happened on the A47 at Trowse, Norfolk, on 10 July last year.
Norwich Crown Court was told that Bothamley had been caught using his mobile phone while driving his lorry two months earlier.
Norfolk Police said when they arrived on the scene of the crash it was “like a scene out of a film” and that it was remarkable that only one person was killed.
Bothamley was found guilty of dangerous driving at Norwich Crown Court on 25 August and sentenced on Tuesday.
Bothamley had been driving a DAF heavy goods lorry on the A47 in the early afternoon of 10 July 2010 when, close to the A146 slip road at Trowse, he was in collision with a line of slow moving traffic.
The lorry first collided with a Ford Mondeo, before then hitting three of the other vehicles involved including another Ford Mondeo, a BMW 320d and a Land Rover Discovery.
Mrs Bird was a front seat passenger in the first Ford Mondeo.
PC Chris Tremlin, of Norfolk Police - who attended the scene moments after the collision, described the scene as “utter carnage and devastation - it was like the scene out of a film”.
He added, “I have attended numerous serious and fatal road collisions over the years and without a doubt this was one of the most horrendous scenes my colleagues and I have witnessed.”
Mrs Bird’s family issued a statement saying: "Liz was a wonderful and remarkable woman who was deeply loved by all our family and friends.
“We take some comfort in that her life, though too short, was one of huge achievement and fulfilment. Her legacy lives on in her children, her work at the Open University and the community in which we live.”
Certainly not condoning what he did, but is it just me that’s failing to see the connection between the highlighted bit and the cause of the crash?
Rob K:
Certainly not condoning what he did, but is it just me that’s failing to see the connection between the highlighted bit and the cause of the crash?
Distraction whilst driving
ROG:
Rob K:
Certainly not condoning what he did, but is it just me that’s failing to see the connection between the highlighted bit and the cause of the crash?Distraction whilst driving
Read it again.
Rob K:
ROG:
Rob K:
Certainly not condoning what he did, but is it just me that’s failing to see the connection between the highlighted bit and the cause of the crash?Distraction whilst driving
Read it again.
Bothamley, who had pleaded not guilty to a charge of causing death by dangerous driving, said he was distracted by a bee or wasp which flew into his cabin and then by a sneezing fit.
A jury at Norwich Crown Court last month took less than an hour to find Bothamley guilty of the charge.
Bothamley, who was sentenced today at Norwich Crown Court, was also disqualified from driving for five years and will have to take an extended test to regain his licence.
Helicopter footage of the aftermath of the horrifying crash has also been released by officers from the Serious Collision Investigation Team in the hope of preventing other families from suffering the tragic consequences of drivers failing to concentrate on the road ahead.
Steve Matthews, Head of the Serious Collision Investigation Team, which led the enquiry into Mrs Bird’s death, commented on the sentence saying: “Any lapse in concentration whilst driving can have horrifying consequences.
Rob K:
ROG:
Rob K:
Certainly not condoning what he did, but is it just me that’s failing to see the connection between the highlighted bit and the cause of the crash?Distraction whilst driving
Read it again.
Once a criminal, always a criminal, it seems 
It’s the press trying, perhaps, to imply something by revealing selected information, which is presumably correct. I presume again they got that mobile offence from the court, or would that have been prejudicial? There is no mention of why the driver did what he did though distraction or inattention may be the cause, possibly in combination with travelling too fast. If the last in the queue was just round a fast bend then this is too easily done; All speculation of course…
@ Malc,
Indeed…
I don’t know if you’ve seen this carry on with ITV and the £1m Red or Black winner but it’s a similar case there, although he hasn’t killed anyone… Apparently he was a wife-beater a long time ago and did his time for it but everyone is jumping up and down saying that ITV shouldn’t give him the money because of his past. 
Snudger:
It’s the press trying, perhaps, to imply something by revealing selected information, which is presumably correct. I presume again they got that mobile offence from the court, or would that have been prejudicial? There is no mention of why the driver did what he did though distraction or inattention may be the cause, possibly in combination with travelling too fast. If the last in the queue was just round a fast bend then this is too easily done; All speculation of course…
Yep. That’s my point. The reporter doesn’t say what he was doing that caused him to crash, but drops into the story that he was caught using a phone whilst driving some months prior. As I say, there’s no connection that I can see unless they’ve missed out a key part of the story. I think if they’d had info on what the cause was it would’ve been in the story so it’s very shoddy reporting and a bunch of speculation.
Having now looked at the video on the BBC website, seems like the lorry driver had no excuse for not noticing the queue on a straight DC. Would like to hear his reason seeing how he pled not guilty.
Here’s the drivers reason for the accident.
EDP24:
Bothamley, who had pleaded not guilty to a charge of causing death by dangerous driving, said he was distracted by a bee or wasp which flew into his cabin and then by a sneezing fit.
I thought it wasn’t allowed to mention any previous convictions during the trial so presumably the mobile phone offence was mentioned after the driver was convicted so it could be considered whilst deciding on an appropriate sentence.
Have to say though that the BBC page mentioned the mobile phone conviction but made no mention of the drivers explanation, I agree that seems like very poor and biased reporting
Rob K:
@ Malc,Indeed…
I don’t know if you’ve seen this carry on with ITV and the £1m Red or Black winner but it’s a similar case there, although he hasn’t killed anyone… Apparently he was a wife-beater a long time ago and did his time for it but everyone is jumping up and down saying that ITV shouldn’t give him the money because of his past.
Do you still beat your wife? 
I haven’t followed the Red and Black thing. I hate Ant & Dec and that other zb who wears his trousers just below his neck, but didn’t Leslie Grantham kill someone in the Army before becoming a celebrity on Eastenders?
I have been done for drink driving, would they bring that up in court? Even though I have a new licence and I do not have to declare it as it is well over the standard 11 years.
You know my feelings on God-bothering, but let him who is without sin, cast the first stone
Wheel Nut:
Do you still beat your wife?
WTF■■?
tachograph:
Here’s the drivers reason for the accident.
EDP24:
Bothamley, who had pleaded not guilty to a charge of causing death by dangerous driving, said he was distracted by a bee or wasp which flew into his cabin and then by a sneezing fit.
Entirely plausible, but has a bit of a ‘poor excuse’-ish ring to it to me.
ROG:
Rob K:
Certainly not condoning what he did, but is it just me that’s failing to see the connection between the highlighted bit and the cause of the crash?Distraction whilst driving
Which is no connection between the highlighted bit and the cause of the crash. Something which happened two moths prior to the incident is not connected.
It was reported on the local news that records show he was texting/using his phone in the hour prior to the collision.
It made no mention if he was on a break while using the phone.
Coffeeholic:
ROG:
Rob K:
Certainly not condoning what he did, but is it just me that’s failing to see the connection between the highlighted bit and the cause of the crash?Distraction whilst driving
Which is no connection between the highlighted bit and the cause of the crash. Something which happened two moths prior to the incident is not connected.
It does show that the driver is prone to driving whilst distracted - it could be that those were the only times they the driver was distracted but, IMO, very unlikely - more like they were the only times when caught
Is it likely that a driver with 9 points for speeding on their licence only sped 3 times?
Rob K:
Wheel Nut:
Do you still beat your wife?
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Loaded_question
It was a response to the crash in Norfolk not to you, unless 
[quote="ROG
Is it likely that a driver with 9 points for speeding on their licence only sped 3 times?[/quote]
Is it likely that a driver with no points on their licence has never sped? 