Dangerous Driving: Unduly Lenient Sentence Scheme

Opened the debate

James Wild spoke on behalf of his constituent Summer Mace, who lost her mother Lisa Carter, sister Jade Mace and stepfather Paul Carter in a fatal car crash caused by Aurelijus Cielevicius. The driver was under the influence of drugs, driving at excessive speeds and disregarding traffic rules. Despite being convicted for causing death by dangerous driving, Cielevicius received only 10 years in prison, which Summer Mace's family found unacceptable. Wild emphasised the need to review sentencing guidelines and proposed changes such as longer sentences, improved bail systems, consecutive sentencing for multiple deaths, and lifetime driving bans. He called for a thorough review of the evidence related to this case and meetings with affected families.

Government Response

Michael Tomlinson acknowledged James Wild's concerns and offered his condolences to the victims' families. He outlined the unduly lenient sentence scheme (ULS) and its role in promoting justice, fairness and consistency. The ULS allows for increasing sentences that are found to be unduly lenient but does not apply to merely lenient sentences. Tomlinson highlighted recent legislative changes including increased penalties from 14 years to life imprisonment for causing death by dangerous driving, and longer disqualification periods. He explained the sentencing guidelines process and affirmed the judge's application of an uplift during the interim period before new guidelines were implemented. On totality, he stated that concurrent sentences are appropriate where multiple deaths arise out of a single incident but will be increased to reflect additional harm. Tomlinson detailed the procedure for imposing discretionary life sentences or extended sentences for dangerous offenders and apologised for the error in his letter regarding the judge's gender. He agreed to meet James Wild and the family to address their concerns further.