Four Years for Death Crash Driver

A driver has been handed a four-year jail term for causing the death of a 26-year-old man by dangerous driving.

Charlie Morris, of Lewisham in London, was a passenger in a car being driven by David Bissmire, 20, also from Lewisham, when it crashed on the A13 at Hadleigh, Essex, on October 22, 2006. Mr Morris died shortly afterwards.

Mr Bissmire was sentenced to four years' imprisonment and handed a three-year driving ban at Basildon Crown Court after he admitted causing death by dangerous driving.

Two other young men, Sam Lebeau and Duncan Rowland, both 19 and from Lewisham, had been accused at an earlier hearing of "racing" Mr Bissmire in another vehicle and also of causing the death of Mr Morris through dangerous driving.

In response to a police officer's question about whether he was racing, Mr Rowland had said: "I was not racing him. I'm not the kind of person who kits up a car to race. He (David) was probably showing off."

Both denied the charges and were cleared by the court.

Copyright © PA Business 2008

David Urpeth from law firm Irwin Mitchell said: All too often, dangerous driving leads to either serious or fatal road traffic accidents. Often, as in this case, innocent passengers or other road users are the victims of such road accidents.

I regularly deal with claims for compensation for people injured or killed in road traffic accidents.