Speeding driver jailed for four years after killing woman on pedestrian crossing in Coventry

A speeding driver who knocked down and killed a young woman on a crossing in Coventry has been jailed for four years.

Hannah Bowden (pictured right), who had multiple sclerosis, died when she was hit by Lewis Gilder’s Ford X-Max in Sky Blue Way at about 9.20pm on August 17 last year.

Warwick Crown Court heard 24-year-old Hannah desperately tried to get out of the way of the car, which experts said was doing nearly 60mph in a 30mph zone.

Gilder, aged 33, a married dad-of-five from Swinburne Avenue, Binley, admitted causing Hannah’s death by dangerous driving, in an incident which was caught on CCTV.
What did the judge tell the defendant?

Jailing Gilder and banning him from driving for five-and-a-half years, Judge Richard Griffith-Jones told him: “There can be no winners on a day like this.

“As a result of your driving you have spread grief and misery across not only your family but in particular the family of the deceased.

“This was not momentary inattention; you were driving badly over a period of time, driving aggressively at very nearly twice the speed limit, and you had undertaken another driver.

“You were driving in an area where people could be expected to be about and seeking to cross the road, and at a time when people would be about.

“The manner of your driving gave you no chance of sensibly dealing with any risk you would be confronted with.

“This young girl, who should have had many years of life in front of her, was crossing the road in a perfectly rational way.

“She had every reason to judge that she would have time to cross.

“I have had the misfortune to have to witness the film of this catastrophic accident.

“It was obvious that you were driving far too fast, and your effort to evade actually made it worse.”