An unlicensed driver who mowed down a dog walker, killing her pet, has avoided jail – after a judge heard he suffered his own ‘karma' when his skull was later shattered in a hit-and-run.
Kallum Aish was speeding along a country lane when he lost control and ploughed into Patricia Faulkner, catapulting her over a hedge and killing her rescue dog Millie.
The 75-year-old grandmother today branded the suspended sentence handed down to Aish as ‘disgusting', and said the driver had ‘effectively got away' with what he had done to her.
Aish, then 17, ran off following the collision in June 2020 – and only came forward a week later after police released CCTV footage of the incident in a bid to identify him.
The footage showed the blue Renault Clio losing control in a cloud of tyre smoke, then crossing the carriageway, hitting Mrs Faulkner on the opposite side of the road, before disappearing into undergrowth.
Kallum Aish (pictured outside Birmingham Magistrates Court), then 17, was speeding along a country lane when he lost control and ploughed into Patricia Faulkner, catapulting her over a hedge and killing her rescue dog Millie in June 2020 in Great Barr, on the edge of Birmingham
Patricia Faulkner (pictured with her pet) was walking her eight-year-old Staffie, Millie, along Doe Bank Lane in Great Barr when a Renault Clio swerved and ploughed into them
A witness estimated Aish, who had two passengers in his car, was travelling between double to triple the 20mph speed limit.
Aish suffered his own ‘karma' 17 months after the incident at Great Barr, on the edge of Birmingham, when he was knocked off his bike in a hit and run, leaving the side of his skull shattered.
Birmingham Crown Court heard his home was also firebombed as a result of community outrage at what he had done, forcing his family to move, while he has also received treatment for cancer.
Aish, now aged 20 and of Sutton Coldfield, West Midlands, admitted causing serious injury by dangerous driving, failing to stop, driving without a licence and insurance, criminal damage (killing the dog) as well as possession of cannabis after 25 bags of the class B drug were found in his bedroom upon arrest.
In a hearing which had been long delayed due to Aish's health issues, he was sentenced today to 22 months,suspended for 18 months. Aish avoided immediate imprisonment mainly due to his age at the time, the fact he had pleaded guilty and his various health issues. He was also banned from driving for three years.
Judge Avik Mukherjee said: ‘I'm acutely aware the sentence I have to pass will not satisfy anyone and it doesn't seek to compensate Mrs Faulkner for her appalling injuries and terrible loss.'
Prosecutor Rebecca Da Silva stated Mrs Faulkner was ‘propelled into the hedge row' while Staffordshire bull terrier Millie was fatally injury.
Mrs Faulkner suffered a broken leg and concussion.
The retired pharmacy worker was informed of Aish's sentence by the Daily Mail and told of her shock. Mrs Faulkner said: ‘Oh my God. I have been waiting all this time (for him to be sentenced) and he's effectively got away with it.
‘This isn't justice.'
She added: ‘He was racing another car, which stopped to pick him up following the collision.
‘I bounced off his windscreen and flew over the hedge into a field, where he left me unconscious.
‘My leg will never be the same. There are a lot of people around here who have been waiting for the sentencing and they will be as outraged as I am by the result.'
The grandmother-of-six, from Great Barr, said she had to be nursed by her disabled husband, Michael, 78, following the collision. Neighbours crowdfunded for the couple to buy a puppy – a Shih tzu-cross called Poppy – following the collision.
The woman walks along Doe Bank Lane, in Great Barr, Birmingham, with her dog on a lead when a Renault Clio swerves towards her from behind
People begin to emerge from the bushes where the car crashed and run onto the street
A man looks back at the scene as two men get out of an Astra which stopped in the road ahead
In a victim impact statement to the court, Mrs Faulkner, who has three children, said Millie was ‘my world, an absolutely wonderful dog.'
She added: ‘I can't understand how anybody could leave a dying dog alone in pain. I will forever miss her. Nothing will replace her.'
Richard Davenport, defending, conceded the ‘callous disregard' Aish showed for the victim and her pet at the time but described the difficult circumstances his client has faced since.
He added: ‘On December 5 the defendant was riding his bike down the road when he was hit by another vehicle. The collision shattered the right side of his skull.'
Mr Davenport said Aish's mother ‘describes this incident as being karma for what took place', and said Aish was still experiencing ongoing health issues.
Judge Mukherjee said: ‘The bottom line Mr Aish is you shouldn't have even been driving at all on that day. You had no licence and no insurance. You already had previously breached the road traffic laws of the country.
‘This incident was borne out of nothing other than reckless and dangerous behaviour. Motor vehicles are lethal weapons. Those driving them must have a duty of care to other road users. You significantly neglected that duty. Not only did Millie die but Mrs Faulkner suffered life-changing injuries.'
Aish was ordered to carry out 30 days of rehabilitation activity and complete a Stepping Stones programme.
The judge added: ‘This is an exceptional course I am taking for very serious offences. You will get one chance. You will not get another.'
The maximum sentence for causing serious injury by dangerous driving is five years imprisonment.
