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Carjack killer sentenced to life | Carjack killer sentenced to life |
(20 minutes later) | |
A man has been jailed for life after knocking down and killing a grandmother in a car stolen from her sister. | |
Pamela Phinn, 48, tried to push her two grandchildren away from the speeding car which was being followed by police in South Shields, Tyneside, on 11 May. | Pamela Phinn, 48, tried to push her two grandchildren away from the speeding car which was being followed by police in South Shields, Tyneside, on 11 May. |
Paul Wales, 47, from Gorst Street in the Walton area of Liverpool, admitted causing death by dangerous driving and aggravated vehicle taking. | |
He will serve a minimum of four years and four months. | He will serve a minimum of four years and four months. |
The Honda Civic came around a tight left-hand bend before hitting the family group on the pavement on Horsley Hill Road, throwing the grandmother 20ft into the air. | |
The car belonged to Mrs Phinn's sister Diane Dalton, also of South Shields, and had been stolen from around a mile away, according to police. | |
Mrs Phinn's daughter-in-law Kelly Laws, 28, and her two grandchildren Dean, aged 18 months, and seven-month-old Mia were also injured. | |
The dead woman's grandchildren were also injured | |
Speaking after the sentencing at Newcastle Crown Court on Monday, Det Ch Insp Tim Walker of Northumbria Police said: "It's difficult to explain the extraordinary coincidences that led to these tragic circumstances. | |
"Obviously Mrs Dalton had her car hijacked by Wales possibly only a mile away from where her sister was ultimately killed, and it was a tragic set of circumstances. | |
"The family are coping because they've had to cope and that is a testament to their resolve and solidarity. | |
"The reality is that Wales will have to convince any parole board in years to come that he's no longer danger to the public." | |
Wales also admitted driving without insurance and driving not in accordance with his licence. | |
Judge John Milford QC told him: "You will be imprisoned indefinitely and you will be eligible for release when you have served the minimum term, but only when the parole board deem you safe." |