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| Version 2 | Version 3 |
|---|---|
| Mother takes son's ashes to court | Mother takes son's ashes to court |
| (about 8 hours later) | |
| A Cumbrian mother took her son's ashes into a courtroom to prove he was dead, after being hounded by officials. | A Cumbrian mother took her son's ashes into a courtroom to prove he was dead, after being hounded by officials. |
| Julie Strange, 43, carried the remains of her son, Paul, 19, into Workington Magistrates' Court after a lengthy row with vehicle licensing chiefs. | Julie Strange, 43, carried the remains of her son, Paul, 19, into Workington Magistrates' Court after a lengthy row with vehicle licensing chiefs. |
| The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) threatened her late son with court action claiming he had not told them about the sale of a vehicle. | The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) threatened her late son with court action claiming he had not told them about the sale of a vehicle. |
| The DVLA has now apologised and promised to investigate the incident. | The DVLA has now apologised and promised to investigate the incident. |
| The mother-of-three said she rang the DVLA each time she received a letter to explain her son had never owned the vehicle in question and had died in October 2006 after being hit by a train. | The mother-of-three said she rang the DVLA each time she received a letter to explain her son had never owned the vehicle in question and had died in October 2006 after being hit by a train. |
| Paul Strange died in October 2006 at the age of 19 | |
| But despite also sending a copy of his death certificate, Mrs Strange was visited by bailiffs wanting to seize the vehicle and with a summons for Paul to appear in court. | But despite also sending a copy of his death certificate, Mrs Strange was visited by bailiffs wanting to seize the vehicle and with a summons for Paul to appear in court. |
| Mrs Strange made the trip, presenting the court with a wooden casket containing her son's remains, complete with brass nameplate. | Mrs Strange made the trip, presenting the court with a wooden casket containing her son's remains, complete with brass nameplate. |
| The case was withdrawn by magistrates. | The case was withdrawn by magistrates. |
| After the hearing, Mrs Strange said: "This has been traumatic for the family. I hope this is the end of it." | After the hearing, Mrs Strange said: "This has been traumatic for the family. I hope this is the end of it." |
| A DVLA spokesman said: "We do everything we can to ensure that our records are accurate, and on the whole they are. | A DVLA spokesman said: "We do everything we can to ensure that our records are accurate, and on the whole they are. |
| "Where mistakes are made, we are of course extremely sorry for any distress caused and in this case we will be urgently examining what happened to ensure lessons are learnt." | "Where mistakes are made, we are of course extremely sorry for any distress caused and in this case we will be urgently examining what happened to ensure lessons are learnt." |