JohnCenaFan28
02-17-2009, 12:57 AM
A grieving grandfather has condemned the three-year prison sentence given to a Portuguese lorry driver for causing the deaths of a family of six.
David and Michelle Statham and their four children were heading home to North Wales when Paulo Jorge Nogueira da Silva's 40-tonne lorry struck their people carrier on the M6 at Sandbach, Cheshire, in October last year.
The couple died instantly at the scene along with sons Reece, 13; Jay, nine; Mason, 20 months; and 10-week-old baby daughter Ellouise.
Da Silva, 46, of Murcia, Spain, was convicted at Chester Crown Court of six counts of causing death by careless driving.
Passing sentence, trial judge Mr Justice Irwin jailed da Silva for three years on each count, telling the defendant he would serve 18 months in custody before being allowed out on licence. Da Silva was also disqualified from driving for three years.
Mr Justice Irwin said: "This case arose from a terrible tragedy. Anyone who has heard the case could not help but have strong, indeed overwhelming, sympathy for the families of those who died, a whole family wiped out."
The jury returned its guilty verdict, by a majority of 11 to 1, after just over six hours of deliberation.
After sentencing, Cheshire's chief crown prosecutor Ian Rushton said: "We would like to thank the work of Cheshire Police who carried out a thorough investigation and all the witnesses who gave evidence in that case. Our thoughts are with the family and friends of Mrs and Mr Statham and their children."
But Michelle's father, Peter Hagans, said: "From the night of the accident when Mr da Silva butchered our family it was not possible for us to get justice in a British court. In our opinion what we sat through this week was no more than a circus, the only difference being the man in charge of a circus wears a top hat not a wig.
"Our lives have been devastated, nothing will ever be the same for us, our hearts have been broken. The many tributes to Michelle, Dave and the children have made us realise just how much this tragedy has affected people from all over the country."
-Nova
David and Michelle Statham and their four children were heading home to North Wales when Paulo Jorge Nogueira da Silva's 40-tonne lorry struck their people carrier on the M6 at Sandbach, Cheshire, in October last year.
The couple died instantly at the scene along with sons Reece, 13; Jay, nine; Mason, 20 months; and 10-week-old baby daughter Ellouise.
Da Silva, 46, of Murcia, Spain, was convicted at Chester Crown Court of six counts of causing death by careless driving.
Passing sentence, trial judge Mr Justice Irwin jailed da Silva for three years on each count, telling the defendant he would serve 18 months in custody before being allowed out on licence. Da Silva was also disqualified from driving for three years.
Mr Justice Irwin said: "This case arose from a terrible tragedy. Anyone who has heard the case could not help but have strong, indeed overwhelming, sympathy for the families of those who died, a whole family wiped out."
The jury returned its guilty verdict, by a majority of 11 to 1, after just over six hours of deliberation.
After sentencing, Cheshire's chief crown prosecutor Ian Rushton said: "We would like to thank the work of Cheshire Police who carried out a thorough investigation and all the witnesses who gave evidence in that case. Our thoughts are with the family and friends of Mrs and Mr Statham and their children."
But Michelle's father, Peter Hagans, said: "From the night of the accident when Mr da Silva butchered our family it was not possible for us to get justice in a British court. In our opinion what we sat through this week was no more than a circus, the only difference being the man in charge of a circus wears a top hat not a wig.
"Our lives have been devastated, nothing will ever be the same for us, our hearts have been broken. The many tributes to Michelle, Dave and the children have made us realise just how much this tragedy has affected people from all over the country."
-Nova