THE family of a woman killed by a lorry driver looking at explicit images on his mobile phone have criticised his five-year sentence.
Crash victim Laura Thomas[SWNS]Ian Glover was distracted by indecent images of women when he ploughed into a broken-down car, hitting teaching assistant Laura Thomas, 20, and her fiance Lewis Pagett.
The couple had got out of their car and were waiting for help on a grassy embankment. Laura’s mother Lisa, 45, said: “A five-year sentence for killing our beautiful daughter is just not enough in our eyes.
“He should not have been accessing women on websites. I don’t know anyone who would think of doing that at their desk, let alone behind the wheel of a 44-ton lorry.
“My Laura lost her life because he was too preoccupied with what he was watching on his phone.”
One minute we were standing over the safety barrier, then the next thing I remember is being in a heap of rubble.
Glover, 44, from Birmingham, was jailed at Shrewsbury Crown Court on Friday.
Afterwards Mr Pagett, who suffered a head injury and a fractured vertebrae in the crash, said: “Laura and I were looking forward to planning our wedding. Instead, I ended up planning her funeral.
“Laura had so much life to give, she had a heart of gold and aimed to become a teacher for disabled children.
“It is devastating to discover Glover had been looking at dating sites when he hit our car – the crash was completely avoidable.”
The couple’s Vauxhall broke down on the A5 near Telford, Shropshire, last July.
Mr Pagett, 19, added: “One minute we were standing over the safety barrier, then the next thing I remember is being in a heap of rubble. I got up and looked at Laura, she was in a bad way.”
Glover, a Sainsbury’s driver for 10 years, admitted dangerous driving. Paul Rogers, defending, said he was “deeply ashamed”.
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