By Grâçia Ada Obi
A student who killed a university lecturer after running a red light while speeding has avoided jail, receiving 18-month suspended sentence and 250 hours of unpaid work.
Sabir Sharif, 22, had been driving at 50mph in a 20mph zone before hitting 36-year-old Laura Ford, a law lecturer at Manchester Metropolitan University. She had been attending her department’s Law Ball function, when she was hit on Higher Cambridge Street in Hulme near the university.
Manchester Crown Court heard that prior to the horror crash, Sharif had driven through a red light at 50mph as Ms Ford planned to cross the road ahead. As she crossed, Sharif braked and reduced his speed to 35mph, but it was not enough to avoid crashing into her.
“Had you been driving at an appropriate speed, had you not decided to run that red light, she would have had ample time to make her crossing,” Judge Sarah Johnston told him. Sharif previously stood trial accused of causing death by dangerous driving, and was acquitted by a jury.
He had already admitted the less serious offence of causing death by careless driving, and has now been handed an 18 month suspended prison sentence. Ms Ford’s family told of their ‘despair’ at her loss, as about a dozen friends and family attended court, including her fiancé.
The judge said of Ms Ford: “What is abundantly clear is that she was a deeply caring and passionate individual. She was a light in the lives of those who knew her.
“Her death has caused despair to her friends and family. No sentence will alleviate their overwhelming grief.”
Prosecuting, Brian Treadwell told how the crash happened just before 1am on May 1, 2022. He said that Ms Ford was ‘thrown into the air’ and fatally injured.
Sharif, formerly an accountancy and finance student at the same university where Ms Ford taught, remained at the scene and spoke with police. He later gave a ‘no comment’ interview to officers and did not give evidence at his trial.
Prosecutors said that Sharif, then 19, was tested for drink and drugs, and found no evidence that he was under the influence. He had not been using a mobile phone at the time either, the court heard.
Sharif had a clean driving licence at the time, but has since been given six points after being caught driving without insurance. Defending, Simon Blakebrough said that Sharif has expressed ‘genuinely and deeply felt’ remorse for his actions.
He said Sharif is ‘well educated’ and has a ‘bright future’, and was studying accounting and finance at Manchester Metropolitan University before being suspended. Mr Blakeborough said Sharif had been regarded as posing a low risk of reoffending, and argued that he does not pose a risk to the public.
Sharif, of Roberts Avenue, Rusholme, faced a maximum sentence of five years in prison for causing death by careless driving. The judge ruled that under the sentencing guidelines, his case fell into the culpability A category, the most serious, in which the driving is deemed to be ‘just below’ the threshold for dangerous driving.
The category gives a starting point for a sentence of two years in prison. The judge then ruled that aggravating and mitigating factors in the case ‘balanced each other out’, and with Sharif being granted a 25 per cent reduction for his guilty plea, the sentence was brought down to 18 months.
Judge Johnston ruled that she was able to avoid sending Sharif to prison ‘by the very narrowest of margins’. She said that Sharif’s age at the time and concerns raised about his welfare, including previous reports of suicidal thoughts, were factors in her decision.
“This was, I must acknowledge, a momentary and impulsive decision by you,” the judge said. She sentenced Sharif to 18 months in prison, suspended for two years.
He was ordered to carry out 250 hours of unpaid work and ten rehabilitation activity requirement days. He was banned from driving for two-and-a-half years and must carry out an extended retest before getting behind the wheel again.
