Speeding drink-driver who killed Telford teenager is jailed
A drink-driver who killed a Shropshire teenager when he lost control of his car and hit a tree after reaching speeds of 90mph in a 30mph zone is today beginning a six-year prison sentence.
Jason Tatton got behind the wheel of his Vauxhall Vectra in the early hours of July 23 last year even though it had failed its MoT the previous day.
The 24-year-old hit speeds of up to 90mph on a 30mph road before he started to lose control of the car at 4.20am. He then crashed into a tree on Baddeley Green Lane in Stoke-on-Trent, with the impact throwing his passengers out of the vehicle.
Georgina Oakley, 18, from Deer Park Road, Wellington, was confirmed dead at the scene.
Her 28-year-old sister, Gema Marsh, who was sitting in the front passenger seat, was left with serious injuries – from which she is still recovering.
Tatton was taken to hospital and later arrested by officers who found he had 92 milligrammes of alcohol in 100 millilitres of blood – the legal limit being 80.
He admitted causing death by dangerous driving, causing serious injury by dangerous driving and to driving while the level of alcohol in his blood was over the prescribed limit at an earlier hearing. Tatton, from Abbey Hulton, Staffordshire, was jailed for six years and banned from driving for five years when he was sentenced at Stoke-on-Trent Crown Court.
The court heard tragic Georgina and her sister Gema were both working in a fish and chip shop in Abbey Hulton at the time.
Police investigations found Tatton's Vauxhall travelled through a crossroads at a speed between 85mph and 90mph in a 30mph zone. He then lost control and hit a tree while driving at between 74mph and 90mph, again in a 30mph zone. An examination of Tatton's vehicle highlighted a number of faults and it also emerged the Vectra had failed its MoT the day before the collision.
Speaking after the hearing, Constable Andy Hogan-Hughes said: "Our thoughts remain with Georgina's family and friends at this difficult time, and I hope the sentence brings some comfort to them.
"Tatton has shown little remorse for his actions throughout the investigation and I hope that his sentence shows that we will deal robustly with drivers who are a danger to others on Staffordshire's roads."
