Two men jailed over Porsche crash death
Two men from mid-Essex have been jailed for the respective roles they played in a road crash which killed a young boy in Maldon.
Eight-year-old Ryan Fleming was hit by a silver Porsche on A414 shortly after 2:30pm on Saturday, January 15, 2011. The schoolboy from Heybridge, Essex was taken to Broomfield Hospital but sadly died a short time later. The driver and passenger of the Porsche were arrested and subsequently charged with offences.
At Chelmsford Crown Court in January, 19-year-old tyre-fitter Timothy Smith from Spring Elms Lane in Little Baddow pleaded guilty to one count of aggravated vehicle taking (death caused by accident).
At the same court in February, 32-year-old garage worker Gary Reader from Newbridge Road in Tiptree pleaded guilty to one count of causing death by dangerous driving and one count of aggravated vehicle taking (death caused by accident).
Both men were released on court bail prior to their sentencing which took place at Chelmsford Crown Court. Gary Reader was sentenced to six-and-a-half years’ imprisonment for both offences while Timothy Smith received a 12-month prison sentence.
Upon passing sentence, Judge Charles Gratwicke told Reader the consequences of his dangerous driving were "horrifying".
He said: "This was not your vehicle, it was not a vehicle that you drove frequently or were experienced with. Therefore there followed, as this court has heard, a course of persistent dangerous driving, with you flagrantly disregarding the rules of the road and having a complete disregard of the danger to other road users that you posed as you drove that vehicle at speed along the highway."
Reader, of Tiptree, Essex, shook his head slightly as he was led away to begin his sentence.
The judge told Smith he "encouraged and egged on" Reader, adding: "You were part of the tragic chain of events which led to such tragic and awful consequences."
As Smith was led down to the cells, one of his relatives shouted after him, "Love you, Tim".
From the other side of the courtroom a member of Ryan's family called back: "We love our Ryan more. We won't see Ryan again, but you'll get to see him again."
Senior Investigating Officer, Insp Keith Whiting, said: "We have just heard the sentencing of Gary Reader and Timothy Smith. This follows a long and complex investigation into the death of eight-year-old Ryan. Both defendants were employed by Kwik-Fit and had been working that day. They had no permission to drive the car from either the owner or their employers.
"It was during this drive that they struck Ryan on the A414 in Maldon last January. On behalf of Essex Police’s Serious Collision Investigation Unit, I would like to thank Ryan’s family for their support throughout this investigation and our thoughts remain with all of them and their friends. I would also like to thank Kwik Fit who helped throughout the investigation and did everything possible to assist with our enquiries. This investigation became high-profile for a variety of reasons, not least because of the car involved and Ryan’s young age.
"We hope people learn from this death. It can happen to anyone driving at high speed in an area where children congregate. Drivers and passengers face prison when they become involved in this type of incident. We here at Essex Police continue to be committed in reducing the number of people killed or seriously injured on county’s roads and will continue to protect the public from drivers who choose to break the law.”
In a statement, the family said: "We are all stuck for words. They say time will heal, but neither time nor reason will change the way we feel. Behind our smiles, lie empty eyes and broken hearts. It is very hard for us to come to terms with Ryan’s death. Justice has today been served on Gary Reader and Timothy Smith. They will have to live with their actions for the rest of their lives. They killed a very precious family member; a family which now lives without seeing or hearing Ryan again. We all have him embedded in our hearts. We still wait for Ryan to come running through the door. We hope this prosecution conveys a strong message to all drivers that cars are weapons and should not be taken lightly. We would like to thank the support we have received from everyone. We would like to thank the emergency services for their roles at the scene and ever after. We would like to have some peace to let us grief in our own time.”
Gary Reader was also disqualified from driving for five years and must sit an extended test before reapplying for his driving licence. Timothy Smith was disqualified from driving for two years.