2008-02-29 12:59:03
A motorist who was texting on her mobile phone when she hit and killed a cyclist has been sentenced to four years in prison.
Jordan Wickington, 19, died from head injuries when he went through a red light and was struck by Kiera Coultas' car in Southampton in February 2007.
Coultas had earlier been found guilty at Southampton Crown Court of causing death by dangerous driving.
The 25-year-old from Hythe, Hampshire, was banned from driving for five years.
Following the crash, Mr Wickington, of Netley, Hampshire, who had not been wearing a helmet, was taken to Southampton General Hospital where he later died.
Sgt Alison West, of Hampshire Constabulary, recommended drivers switched off their mobile phones during journeys.
"It's pretty routine nowadays at the scene of these serious or fatal accidents to seize drivers' mobile phones, and to have them analysed to see if the phone has had anything to do with the driving standards involved," she said.
"In this particular incident, it transpired from a phone analysis that there was phone use close to the time of the incident."