Durham Police say "there are no winners", as texting crash driver sentenced

"Whether the sentence is too short or too long, there are no winners" - that's the reaction of Durham Police to the seven months sentence received by 20-year-old Katie Foster for causing death by dangerous driving.

Foster was handed the sentence - which she'll serve at a young offenders institution - by Judge Christopher Prince at Durham Crown Court yesterday.

36-year-old Lee Cain, from West Cornforth, died when Foster's red VW Polo collided with his silver Peugeot 206 on the A668 West Auckland bypass in March 2016.

The then 19-year-old had sent a text 25 seconds before the smash and received one nine seconds before the smash. She had the phone beneath her leg.

Foster, who used a tissue to wipe her eyes and nose throughout the hearing, struggled to hold back tears as the judge told her:

"It is clear that while driving you were permitted yourself to be distracted by your phone - which was avoidable."

"No sentence any judge can give can be, or can even considered to be, in any way achieving the diminishing of the suffering endured by those who have lost a loved one."

The court also heard from Lee's mother, Gail Cain, in the form of a victim impact statement.

It told of how Mr Cain had been due to donate a kidney to his seriously-ill brother Bradley, however he was killed before he had the chance.

"Lee was young and fit and happy to help his brother but because of this collision my husband has had to go through this surgery instead."

The grieving mother added:

"I was distraught, numb; in fact words cannot describe hearing his life had been ended at the age of only 36."

"Everybody misses his fun, laughter and antics. I doubt any Christmas or birthday will ever be the same again."

Speaking outside Durham Crown Court, PC Mark Sheppard said:

“Some may say it’s not enough, some may it’s a bit harsh – but the top and bottom of this is there are no winners. A young girl has had her liberty taken away, but we have to remember she took somebody’s life.

“Yes, we couldn’t prove she wasn’t on her phone at the time but we know she was using it and was generally distracted.

“Personally, I believe the sentence puts the right message out there – I go to way too many crashes where mobile phones are an issue.

“The consequences of these distractions are just horrendous."