Is this the right decision?

[Ethel]

Gary Cooke has escaped a prison sentence for the death of his 7 year old girl who died on Boxing Day riding a quad bike that she got for Christman on the road, in the dark.

It is very true to say that he never set out to kill her, but what he said shortly after her death bothered me a great deal:

Mr Cooke, an organic farmer, said: "Lizzie was a perfectly capable, confident and able little girl.
"She was brought up on the farm and in the village.
"She's been on that road riding her ponies and her horses thousands of times before.
"There is no point in regretting what happened. It could just as easily have happened if she had been on her horse.

When I read that at the time, I could have shook him until his teeth rattled.
Definitely a case of more money than sense.


http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/essex/76801 17.stm

[sara3]

so riding her ponies and horses is legal, driving her quad bike is not. where were the responsible adults??

madness. he should regret it for every day of his life.

[sanden]

Sounds very strange that she was taken home after the accident? Was that because she appeared to be OK, and then quickly deteriorated?

[sara3]

the father probably knows the law, and panicked.

[DrFilth]

We have not seen all the facts, after the accident she may have felt ok .
where i worked a man fell 10 feet to the ground off a small scaffold platform . the man was just about to get up saying he felt ok. one of the first aiders saw him sat on the ground and spoted a spot of blood in his ear. he kept the man on the ground and phoned for an emergency ambulance. 10 minutes later the man was dead.



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[vehelpfulguy]

A few people have used the word "accident" in this debate.

This was NOT an accident.

This idiot (father) gave his SEVEN year old daughter a quad bike capable of a top speed of 35 MPH for Xmas.

The NEXT DAY he allows her out on the public road in the dark.

This was no "accident".

Having said all that, sending him to prison wont do anybody any good and he will live with this for the rest of his life, so he already has a "life sentence".

I just hope he and other people who do stupid things like this would stop for a few minutes and think.

[lynbrown]

Sometimes the point of a jail sentence is to make an example and prevent others taking such reckless action ie letting small child on a powerful bike after owning it for only one day.

[mrs_overall]

Normally I would be in amongst the lynch mob baying for blood, but in this case I don't think any judicial punishment could match this man having to live with his conscience for the rest of his days.

[LoftyLottie]

My thoughts are the same as veryhelpfulguy's.

I would add that there are statistically far more dreadful accidents on country roads than there are on city roads. As a country dweller I would not let childdren out on any of the roads after dark whether on foot, on a horse, bike, etc.
People drive irresponsibly on country roads simply because there is a lack of traffic - I often meet people driving on the wrong side of the road at fairly high speeds.

The father acted totally irresponsibly. He now has a criminal record. Prison would not have served any purpose whatsoever.

[LoftyLottie]

http://www.iam.org.uk/motoringtrust/news/lates t_news/Quiet+country+roads+Britain+biggest+kil ler.htm

[Ethel]

Dr.Filth - it is equally illegal to allow a 7 year old to ride a moped or motorised scooter on the public highway too.

You seem to be ignoring the fact this is a 7 year old child.

[LoftyLottie]

Take no notice Ethel. We all know you well and know you are a wise and helpful lady who more often than not gives wise and researched answers, as well as having a really good SOH. Keep up the good work!

[socket2008]

Too many parents these days have no concept of danger. That's the real problem.

It;s a shame for the McCanns and the Cooke's that their reality check has come at a consequence of the loss of their children's lives.

[Ice.Maiden]

I agree with socket. These are supposed to be sensible parents, but in both of the above cases, there seems to've been a considerable amount of negligence.
This 7 year old suffered a dreadful accident BECAUSE of her father's stupidity, and although he has to live with this for the rest of his life, he was breaking the law by allowing his child on a public highway with a quadbike, and ESPECIALLY when it was dark. I live out in the country, and it's true that because motorists think there's less traffic on the roads, they tend to up their speed sometimes. The man was more than stupid. He should've received a custodial sentence for allowing his daughter to take such a risk.