Beloved grandad, 75, killed by speeding driver who had been banned before
A speeding motorist who ploughed into a pensioner as he walked home from the pub already had a string of driving offences.
Thuran Miah, 24, was banned from driving twice before he was found guilty of causing the death of grandfather Harry Davies.
He was driving between 53mph and 61mph when he struck the 75-year-old, who was ‘just crossing the road, minding his own business’ after a day out with friends.
Mr Davies’ devastated family said they were left ‘in a state of disbelief’ after learning he had died in such a way.
‘Every single happy occasion is tinged by sadness that Harry is no longer with us’, they added.
When they went to clear his house, they found Christmas cards addressed to his grandchildren with money inside.
‘Sadly he was never able to give them to them,’ his sister said, adding that ‘no-one can prepare you for such an unexpected thing’.
Burnley Crown Court heard Miah was accelerating away from a speed camera when Mr Davies was getting off a bus in the town of Accrington, Lancashire.
Mr Davies waited 19 seconds for a gap in the traffic, before stepping into the road.
‘It would have been a suitable gap if the defendant had been driving at an appropriate speed,’ prosecutor David Traynor said.
Mr Traynor said the area was dark and busy with traffic, and it was raining that fatal afternoon in November 2019.
When Miah spotted the pensioner, the driver slammed on the brakes but it was too late as he was already going too fast to stop.
Mr Traynor told the jury during the three-day trial Miah has no past criminal convictions but has a string of motoring offences to his name.
Back in 2018, he received four points and a fine for speeding in a 30mph zone and a few months later he was banned for 14 days after police followed him driving at 119mph on the motorway.
Following the tragic crash, Miah did not ‘learn from his mistakes’ and in 2020 he was banned for six months after being convicted of driving without insurance and failing to give the identity of a driver who had committed an offence.
Months later, in 2021, he was handed another three points and fined £440 for driving with a defective tyre.
Richard Dawson, defending, said his client’s driving ‘fell short of the standard of what would be expected of a competent driver’ over a very short distance.
‘He expresses genuine regret and deep remorse for his actions on that fateful day,’ he stressed.
He added that Miah stopped at the scene and offered what assistance he could.
The jury heard he has taken on a father-figure role within his family since his own dad became ill following a stroke, and he looks after his parents and younger siblings.
Judge Sara Dodd, sentencing, said: ‘This is a tragic case and nothing I can do today will lessen the grief of those who still miss Mr Davies terribly and nothing will lessen what I accept is your very genuine remorse.
‘You even sought to say you were not responsible. It was for the jury to decide your level of culpability, which they have done.’
Miah admitted causing Mr Davies’ death by careless driving but was convicted of the more serious offence of causing death by dangerous driving.
He was jailed for three and a half years and was also banned from being behind the wheel for five years with a 20-month extension to reflect the time he will be behind bars.
The judge said the offence was aggravated by his previous record for driving offences.
‘Being stopped didn’t teach you to listen. Being disqualified didn’t teach you to listen. Nothing deterred you,’ Ms Dodd said.
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