The parents of a woman killed in a hit and run have said they are devastated Andy Burnham could be about to release the monster who took their daughter from them. Abigail Eggleston was on a pedestrian crossing in Durham in the early hours of Sunday, October 26, last year when she was hit by a Volkswagen Golf driven by Liam Bowes.
Crime and Sentencing
Bowes, who had drunk eight to 10 pints and drove through a red light, did not stop, leaving 22-year-old law student Abi for dead in the middle of the road. The coward went into hiding and the Golf was later found torched in a layby in Kelloe. While hiding from the law, heartless Bowes messaged a pal, saying he was starving and wanted pizza.
He admitted causing death by dangerous driving, perverting the course of justice, driving without insurance and failing to stop after a collision. The callous killer was jailed for 12 years at Teesside Crown Court on March 2.
Family's Devastation
Abi's parents, Mandy and Andy Eggleston, from Northamptonshire, are still dealing with the grief and trauma of losing their beloved daughter, as well as total disappointment at Bowes's lenient sentence. While sentenced to 12 years, he was expected to only serve eight.
But their pain grew even sharper after the family received a letter from the Probation Service on Monday (August 10) saying that Bowes's sentence falls within the Government's early release scheme. They received the letter just two days after marking what would have been Abi's 23rd birthday.
Appeal to Prime Minister
The controversial scheme will see some adults serving sentences released earlier than their original date as ministers try to free up spaces in Britain's overcrowded prisons. Mrs Eggleston urged Prime Minister Andy Burnham to exclude Bowes from the scheme.
She told the Daily Express: "We are absolutely devastated at the idea of him being freed. He was callous and uncaring. He's not a petty criminal. This is someone with no morals."He will carry on the way he was before. There will be another victim in time. He's shown no remorse for what he's done."
Mr Eggleston, 52, said: "The leniency of his sentence made us very angry. He may not even serve eight years. He killed our daughter." Abi's mum has sought help from her local MP and the Victims' Commissioner for England and Wales, Claire Waxman.
Mrs Eggleston said: "We're trying to raise awareness. It's just awful. We're trying to rise from the ashes, but we are now completely floored again."
Wider Impact
The Prime Minister is under mounting pressure to prevent serious offenders being released early, including two of the killers of Pc Andrew Harper, who died on duty responding to reports of a burglary. Mr Burnham has said he wouldn’t forgive himself if he did not try to lessen the "anguish" of Pc Andrew Harper’s family, but there are thousands of families and victims facing the same uncertainty and anguish.
Mrs Eggleston, 57, said: "It's just reopened wounds for the victims. The Government is not being sensitive to the victims' loved ones, friends and families and how this affects them."It seems to me that the defendants are being given a reward while the victims are being penalised and traumatised by this."
Abi's parents said they readily identified with Pc Harper's widow, Lissie, who is battling to ensure his killers do not walk free before their sentences are due to end. Mrs Eggleston said: "We acknowledge that it is not just Lissie or us affected. This affects so many people. We all need to stand up and have a voice about this because the idea is preposterous."
The Chief Constable of Durham Constabulary, which led the investigation that resulted in Bowen's imprisonment, expressed disappointment at the prospect of an early release. Ch Cons Rachel Bacon, said: "The death of Abi Eggleston had a devastating impact on her family and friends and left a deep impression on all those officers and staff involved in bringing her killer to justice."I of course respect the rule of law, but I am deeply disappointed that individuals who have caused the death of another, in such horrendous circumstances, may be released early."Our thoughts remain not just with Abi’s family, but with the families of all victims who have lost their lives and are potentially impacted by the early release scheme."
And in a further devastating blow to the family, Mr Eggleston, who has multiple sclerosis, feels he has reached the point where he does not know if he can go on. He considers his condition extreme enough to be a valid reason to consider going to the assisted-suicide organisation, Dignitas. Mr Eggleston said: "When Abi was killed it completely floored me. We slowly tried to pick ourselves up. If that is even possible."To find out that the person responsible could be let out early... How is this even possible? It's too much for anyone to bear."
Before receiving the letter, the family had planned to one day to campaign in Abi's honour for reckless drivers who kill to be sentenced for murder. But their plans have been side-lined by this latest blow. Mrs Eggleston, paying tribute to her daughter, said: "She was so ambitious, a real go-getter. A ray of sunshine. She was so selfless. She was gorgeous. She had such high aspirations. She was going to conquer the world."
Abi's mum said her daughter was also a great help to Mr Eggleston, helping to look after him and planning to help pay for all the care and equipment he would need in the future to manage his MS. Mrs Eggleston said: "She was everything to us. He just left her in the road."
