Drunk driver jailed over death of 'beautiful' woman in Christmas crash

A man has been jailed for ten years for causing the death of a 'popular' young woman while driving over the influence.

Charlie Hilton reached 100mph as he was chased by police before his Mercedes hit a tree, flipped over and burst into flames early on December 25 2021.

Lillie Clack was fatally injured in the Christmas day crash and died in hospital three days later.

She and her two friends had been passengers in Hilton's car after he offered them a lift on their way home from a trip to Winter Wonderland.

Prosecutor Harry Garside said they had told Hilton a police vehicle had turned its blue lights on behind them and was indicating for him to stop.

Instead, he sped off so fast one of the group bumped his head on the roof of the car.

Mr Garside said: “The defendant’s response to being told to pull over was silence and he continued driving at high speed.”

Those speeds were said to be in excess of 70mph on residential roads and at one point reached 100mph in a 40mph zone."

Hilton pleaded guilty to causing Ms Clack’s death by dangerous driving, three counts of causing serious injury, failing to stop when directed and driving above the alcohol limit.

Lillie's mother and aunt wept as they read their victim impact statements to the court.

Her mother Debbie Clark said her daughter was her "pride and joy":

“The beautiful person who grew inside me has been taken away too soon. My heart has been shattered into a million pieces.”

She criticised Hilton's behaviour after the crash:

“Throughout the year he has been free to live his life as if nothing has happened. He was plastered all over social media enjoying life as he did not give a fig about Lillie or her family. His actions make it seems like he just did not care.”

Lillie’s family are campaigning for a change in the law meaning that if an individual causes death by their driving, they should have their license suspended immediately.

The family attended Hilton's plea hearing nearly a year after Lillie's death in December 2022 where the judge removed Hilton's driving license.

"The biggest surprise of the day was, the judge ‘took away’ his driving license! Finally, 49 weeks after his actions caused the death of our beautiful Lillie, he wasn’t permitted to drive" the family wrote on their online campaign page.

The family say the length of time it can take to remove someone's license after they have been involved in a fatal accident is unacceptable and argue it puts others at risk.

They also want the law to change to mean those who cause death by dangerous while driving under the influence never get their licenses reinstated.