This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-37823457
The article has changed 10 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 2 | Version 3 |
|---|---|
| Lorry driver jailed over four-death A34 crash | Lorry driver jailed over four-death A34 crash |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| A lorry driver who hit and killed a mother and three children while using his phone has been jailed for 10 years. | A lorry driver who hit and killed a mother and three children while using his phone has been jailed for 10 years. |
| Tomasz Kroker smashed into Tracy Houghton's car, killing her instantly along with her sons Ethan, 13, and Joshua, 11, and her partner's 11-year-old daughter Aimee Goldsmith. | Tomasz Kroker smashed into Tracy Houghton's car, killing her instantly along with her sons Ethan, 13, and Joshua, 11, and her partner's 11-year-old daughter Aimee Goldsmith. |
| Judge Maura McGowan said his attention had been so poor he "might as well have had his eyes closed". | Judge Maura McGowan said his attention had been so poor he "might as well have had his eyes closed". |
| Kroker, 30, was scrolling through music selections at the time of the crash. | Kroker, 30, was scrolling through music selections at the time of the crash. |
| 'Sudden horror' | 'Sudden horror' |
| The judge described the case as the most horrific she had ever seen. | |
| The family had been returning from a camping trip in two cars at the time of the crash. Ms Houghton's partner Mark Goldsmith was in a car behind her, and witnessed what happened. | The family had been returning from a camping trip in two cars at the time of the crash. Ms Houghton's partner Mark Goldsmith was in a car behind her, and witnessed what happened. |
| The court had heard that Kroker was so distracted by his phone that he barely looked at the road for almost a kilometre. | The court had heard that Kroker was so distracted by his phone that he barely looked at the road for almost a kilometre. |
| Kate Goldsmith, whose daughter Aimee died, said Kroker had turned his lorry into a "lethal weapon" by using his mobile phone while driving at 50mph. | Kate Goldsmith, whose daughter Aimee died, said Kroker had turned his lorry into a "lethal weapon" by using his mobile phone while driving at 50mph. |
| Speaking outside Reading Crown Court, she said: "The 10-year sentence will not ease our pain and suffering, nor do we believe it will send a strong enough message to those who lack the self-restraint to not use a mobile phone when driving." | Speaking outside Reading Crown Court, she said: "The 10-year sentence will not ease our pain and suffering, nor do we believe it will send a strong enough message to those who lack the self-restraint to not use a mobile phone when driving." |
| Some family members left the court as the prosecution began to show photos of the crash scene and video from the lorry's cab camera. | Some family members left the court as the prosecution began to show photos of the crash scene and video from the lorry's cab camera. |
| Others were reduced to tears as video of the crash on the A34 near Newbury, Berkshire, in August was shown. | Others were reduced to tears as video of the crash on the A34 near Newbury, Berkshire, in August was shown. |
| Less than a second before the impact, an onboard camera showed Kroker, originally from Poland, "looking up with sudden horror on his face... it was too late to take any avoiding action," the court heard. | Less than a second before the impact, an onboard camera showed Kroker, originally from Poland, "looking up with sudden horror on his face... it was too late to take any avoiding action," the court heard. |
| He hit one car, flipping it on to its back and down an embankment, leaving its driver with injuries including a broken back. | He hit one car, flipping it on to its back and down an embankment, leaving its driver with injuries including a broken back. |
| A van that was next in the queue of stationary traffic was driven forward "like a battering ram", the court heard. | A van that was next in the queue of stationary traffic was driven forward "like a battering ram", the court heard. |
| The car in which Ms Houghton, 45, and her three children were travelling in was pushed under a lorry, compressing it to a third of its normal size, the court was told. | The car in which Ms Houghton, 45, and her three children were travelling in was pushed under a lorry, compressing it to a third of its normal size, the court was told. |
| Reading Crown Court heard that an hour before the pile-up, Kroker had signed a declaration to his employer, promising he would not use his phone at the wheel. | Reading Crown Court heard that an hour before the pile-up, Kroker had signed a declaration to his employer, promising he would not use his phone at the wheel. |
| Kroker, from Trajan Walk, Andover, Hampshire, pleaded guilty to four counts of causing death by dangerous driving on 10 October. | Kroker, from Trajan Walk, Andover, Hampshire, pleaded guilty to four counts of causing death by dangerous driving on 10 October. |