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Hit-and-run driver who killed cyclist jailed for almost 10 years

Ben George was uninsured and unlicensed when he killed Jeffrey Davis in January last year

A hit-and-run driver who killed a cyclist in Hull has been jailed for 9 years and six months and been banned from driving for 12 years and four months.

Ben George, aged 30 and from Hull, was sentenced today at Hull Crown Court after pleading guilty to causing death by dangerous driving, causing death whilst uninsured and causing death whilst driving without a licence.

Humberside Police conducted a house-to-house search and initially made three arrests in connection with the fatal crash, which happened on Wednesday 29 January 2020, as they tried to track down the driver of the Audi A4 involved.

George, who pleaded guilty to all charges, fled the scene and the cyclist, 56-year-old Jeffrey Davis, died in hospital from his injuries.

Following sentencing, Sergeant Rob Mazingham of Humberside Police Serious Collision Unit said: “I would like to thank Jeffrey Davis' family for their patience whilst this case has been investigated.

“They have endured unimaginable pain since the loss of their loved one, something no family should have to go through.

“I hope that today’s sentencing of George will provide Jeffreys family some form of closure at this very difficult time in knowing George is unable to cause further harm.

“Ben George has not only lost his freedom today, but he also has to live with knowledge that he has changed a family’s life forever.

“For those who choose to commit driving offences and continue to put themselves and others at risk, I have a simple message for you. We will not tolerate it and we will take appropriate action.”

The maximum penalty for causing death by dangerous driving is 14 years imprisonment. However, even in the most egregious cases, that maximum term is never imposed.

While George’s guilty pleas will have secured him a discount on the jail term, the convictions for driving while uninsured and without a valid driving licence will have had an effect on the sentence imposed.

Simon joined road.cc as news editor in 2009 and is now the site’s community editor, acting as a link between the team producing the content and our readers. A law and languages graduate, published translator and former retail analyst, he has reported on issues as diverse as cycling-related court cases, anti-doping investigations, the latest developments in the bike industry and the sport’s biggest races. Now back in London full-time after 15 years living in Oxford and Cambridge, he loves cycling along the Thames but misses having his former riding buddy, Elodie the miniature schnauzer, in the basket in front of him.

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14 comments

Avatar
pedalingparamedic | 2 years ago
7 likes

Headline would be better if it read 'Hit-and-run driver who killed cyclist jailed for less than 10 years'

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chrisonabike | 2 years ago
5 likes

The sentance of course won't bring anyone back but the other sad thing is that this is "news" because it's actually a reasonable fraction of the maximum.  I can recall plenty others where drink, drugs, disqualification and fleeing the scene don't seem to have attracted anything like. What were the rules on being able to query a sentence as "too lenient" again, just for the next time?

Also lifetime bans coupled with "and if you're caught again it's direct to prison as an administrative matter".  Personally I could bear giving people a second chance but a third or fourth? It's not like bikes, buses, trains and taxis don't exist.

Avatar
Rapha Nadal | 2 years ago
1 like

Does the 12 year driving ban begin from the sentencing date or from when he gets released from prison?

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HoarseMann replied to Rapha Nadal | 2 years ago
5 likes

Driving bans are now extended to take into account the likely time spent behind bars (half the sentence). So it's a 12.5 year ban from sentencing date. Not that it would stop him, he was driving without a licence.

https://www.sentencingcouncil.org.uk/explanatory-material/magistrates-co...

Avatar
Captain Badger | 2 years ago
13 likes

Thoughts and deep condolences with the family and friends of Jeffrey Davis

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Hirsute | 2 years ago
3 likes

"He was not insured to drive the Audi at the time and the only person insured to do so was a woman who had begun a relationship with him.

George "dumped" the car just off Beverley Road, near the home of his girlfriend, who was in the vehicle with him, along with her two young children, aged nine and four."

"George had driven through a red traffic light before the accident."

"The vehicle had also been driven at speed before the accident."

Why didn't she tell him to stop speeding way before the accident ?

Avatar
Captain Badger replied to Hirsute | 2 years ago
15 likes
hirsute wrote:

"He was not insured to drive the Audi at the time and the only person insured to do so was a woman who had begun a relationship with him.

George "dumped" the car just off Beverley Road, near the home of his girlfriend, who was in the vehicle with him, along with her two young children, aged nine and four."

"George had driven through a red traffic light before the accident."

"The vehicle had also been driven at speed before the accident."

Why didn't she tell him to stop speeding way before the accident ?

She may well have done. In addition if the relationship was abusive she may not have had the agency to do so, even if she already knew he wasn't fit to drive

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cbrndc replied to Captain Badger | 2 years ago
3 likes

She may have done, but also may have encouraged him to drive fast. IF the relationship was abusive? Stop making up stories.

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Captain Badger replied to cbrndc | 2 years ago
4 likes

cbrndc wrote:

She may have done, but also may have encouraged him to drive fast. IF the relationship was abusive? Stop making up stories.

Don't know what's rattled your cage tbh. I was putting forward possible scenarios in response to Hirsute.

Your hypothesis of course is possible, though it in no way mitigates the culpability of the driver. 

 

 

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Woldsman | 2 years ago
16 likes

"George had convictions for dangerous driving in 2004 and 2010 and for drink-driving as well as for robbery in 2005."

So now three serious driving related incidents, but still he can look forward to getting his driving licence back? Why, exactly?

https://www.hulldailymail.co.uk/news/hull-east-yorkshire-news/cowardly-d...

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Captain Badger replied to Woldsman | 2 years ago
6 likes
Woldsman wrote:

"George had convictions for dangerous driving in 2004 and 2010 and for drink-driving as well as for robbery in 2005."

So now three serious driving related incidents, but still he can look forward to getting his driving licence back? Why, exactly?

https://www.hulldailymail.co.uk/news/hull-east-yorkshire-news/cowardly-d...

And how can he have avoided a full sentence?

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Woldsman replied to Captain Badger | 2 years ago
5 likes

Captain Badger wrote:

And how can he have avoided a full sentence?

I *think* it's because he pleaded guilty - after eventually admitting he had been driving - so he didn't receive the full tariff.  But then I'm not aware of any case in which the full possible sentence has been given. 

Avatar
Captain Badger replied to Woldsman | 2 years ago
3 likes
Woldsman wrote:

Captain Badger wrote:

And how can he have avoided a full sentence?

I *think* it's because he pleaded guilty - after eventually admitting he had been driving - so he didn't receive the full tariff.  But then I'm not aware of any case in which the full possible sentence has been given. 

Yes, I suppose that makes sense (relatively ...) there needs to be some incentive to fess up

Avatar
Eton Rifle replied to Woldsman | 2 years ago
0 likes

Indeed. This POS is an habitual, violent criminal. He should never be allowed access to a spoon, never mind a car.

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