Driver who caused death of two teenagers in Morley jailed
A driver who "diced with death on a daily basis" has been jailed for seven-and-a-half years for causing the deaths of two teenage boys and leaving two others with life-changing injuries.
A driver who "diced with death on a daily basis" has been jailed for seven-and-a-half years for causing the deaths of two teenage boys and leaving two others with life-changing injuries. Thomas McMeekin caused the deaths of 14-year-olds George Wharton and Rhys Baker when he lost control of his car and crashed into a tree in Morley, West Yorkshire, in March last year. McMeekin, who also suffered serious injuries in the crash and is confined to a wheelchair, was sentenced at Leeds Crown Court for causing death by dangerous driving.
The Recorder of Leeds, Judge Peter Collier QC, said witnesses who had seen McMeekin on the roads that day described his driving as "aggressive", "that of an idiot" and "an accident waiting to happen". He told the court that the 23-year-old enjoyed drawing attention to the way he drove and had been criticised in the past by passengers and his own mother, who had threatened to take away his car.
Judge Collier told McMeekin: "On the 7 March 2015, by your dangerous driving, you took the lives of two children, seriously injured two others and caused serious injuries to yourself." The judge said the defendant would take teenagers out in his car in exchange for petrol money and, on the day of the crash, picked up the four boys with the intention of taking them to buy fast food at Birstall Retail Park. He said: "They were all passengers in the car you were driving. They were young and, it would appear, they were drawn by the excitement of riding round (with you) but they were too young to appreciate the risks you ran when you diced with death on a daily basis."