Drunk driver who killed 22-year-old student jailed
PA MediaA drink driver who drank up to 10 pints before killing a law student has been jailed for 12 years for death by dangerous driving.
Liam Bowes, 37, of Kelloe, County Durham, also downed shots before driving and hitting 22-year-old Abigail Eggleston, from Northamptonshire, on the outskirts of Durham last October.
CCTV footage showed Bowes drinking at a working men's club before he got into his car, which he later set on fire.
Teesside Crown Court heard Bowes "didn't brake and didn't stop" as he drove through a red light at Neville's Cross and hit the student at a crossing.
Bowes admitted causing death by dangerous driving at a previous hearing, as well as perverting the course of justice, driving without insurance and failing to stop after a road accident.
Judge Francis Laird said Bowes's wilful decision to drive while highly intoxicated "resulted in the loss of a precious life".
Durham PoliceDr Christopher Wood, prosecuting, said Bowes had been at a friend's birthday party in Langley Park and CCTV from the working men's club showed him drinking "eight to 10 pints" of beer and shots.
Images showed him unsteady on his feet and behaving erratically.
He left the party at about 01:30 and drove through Neville's Cross, where the student was heading home after a night out.
Despite the light traffic, she waited for the light to turn green and crossed only when it should have been safe to do so, but was then knocked down by Bowes.
A taxi driver waiting to turn at the junction later told police the VW Golf driver did not brake as he went through the red light and hit the student.
The police investigation found he had been consistently driving between 10 and 20mph over the speed limit and was driving at 56mph through the lights.
Bowes did not stop at the scene and left Eggleston fatally injured in the road.
He then abandoned the Volkswagen Golf, which belonged to his friend, and set fire to it as he attempted to get rid of any forensic evidence, the court heard. He then hid out in a caravan.
Family handoutChristopher Morrison, defending, read out a letter from Bowes in which he said he took "full responsibility for the accident".
"I understand that my actions have changed lives forever and I will rightly so carry this burden with me for the rest of my life," he said.
In a victim impact statement Abigail Eggleston's mother, Mandy Eggleston, said their "whole world had been completely crushed, destroyed, and will never be the same again".
She said Bowes was "a selfish coward for leaving her daughter dying in the road" and it showed he had a complete disregard for human life.
"You have no shame and no remorse," she said.
Additional reporting by PA Media.
