29/02/2008

Texting Motorist Jailed For Cyclist's Death

A motorist who hit and killed a teenage cyclist while texting on her mobile phone has been jailed for four years.

Kiera Coultas, 25, from Hythe in Hampshire, was also banned from driving for five years, after which she will have to take an extended driving test.

She had been found guilty of causing death by dangerous driving at Southampton Crown Court, after denying the charge.

The court heard how Coultas struck Jordan Wickington, 19, after he went through a red light in Southampton on February 7, 2007.

Coultas had not seen him because she was replying to a text from her estranged husband, the court was told.

Mr Wickington, from Netley in Hampshire, was taken to Southampton General Hospital, where he later died. He had not been wearing a cycle helmet at the time of the collision.

(KMcA)




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