An 18-year-old girl died while holding her dad’s hand after a driver, who turned a BMW into a ‘lethal weapon,’ crashed into her car.
The family of Georgia Bendelow, 18, said they have been left ‘broken’ after the August 2022 crash, which killed the young woman and left her boyfriend and mum seriously hurt.
Thomas Sherwood, 36, was jailed for 14 years yesterday for causing the death of Ms Bendelow after smashing his BMW M3 into the car she was travelling in on the A63 in Leeds.
Sherwood, from Leeds, drove the high-powered sports car he had borrowed from a friend without insurance, speeding at 80mph in a 50mph zone on Selby Road on August 31, 2022.
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Mr Bendelow was a passenger in a red Seat Mii driven by her mum when Sherwood collided with the vehicle, sending it flying across the carriageway for over 1,000ft before it landed on the opposite lane.
Leeds Crown Court heard how her dad raced from his nearby home to find the trio crushed and trapped inside the mangled wreckage.
The father described watching his daughter take her final breaths while trying to reassure her that help was coming.
He said in his victim impact statement: ‘I’m now a broken man and left with a vision that will forever haunt me.
‘Seeing my daughter Georgia in the most horrific state, just gasping for her last breaths whilst blood was running down her face.
‘All I could do was be there for her, to hold her and reassure her until help came.
‘I can only hope that she could hear me.
‘Seeing her in that tangled car is a sight that will never leave me.’
Ms Bendelow suffered catastrophic head injuries and died in hospital two days later. Her mum and Georgia’s boyfriend survived after suffering serious injuries.
Her grandparents said Sherwood’s driving turned the BMW into a ‘lethal weapon.’
Mark, Ms Bendelow’s boyfriend, said the crash took away the ‘love of my life and our future together.’
Detective Sergeant Steve Suggit, from West Yorkshire Police, described Sherwood’s actions as ‘reckless and dangerous.’
He said that had the motorist driven safely at the speed limit, ‘Georgia would still be with her friends and family now.’
Sherwood was found guilty of death by dangerous driving.
He was also found guilty of two counts of causing serious injury by dangerous driving and he previously admitted causing death while driving an uninsured car.
He was also banned from driving for 14 years and four months, and must complete an extended test if he ever wants to drive again.
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