A drug driver from Fairlight who killed a man in a crash then fled the scene has had his sentenced increased after police appealed.
Christopher Fenton, 40, and self-employed from Lower Waits Lane in Fairlight, Rother, was more than three times the legal limit for cannabis when he drove into the path of 65-year-old Marcus Haynes from Gloucestershire in March of 2020.
Fenton's Audi S4 hit Haynes' Citroen Picasso on Fairlight Road, Fairlight, at around 6.45pm on 6 March 2020.
Haynes died at the scene, while his 66-year-old wife suffered serious injuries and their son, aged 24, from Stroud in Gloucestershire, sustained minor injuries.
Fenton ran away from the scene but was later returned by his mother, having changed his footwear.
He pleaded guilty to the offences of causing death by dangerous driving and causing serious injury by dangerous driving, and appeared at Lewes Crown Court on Monday 10 May, where he was sentenced to a total of three years and eight months’ imprisonment.
But police questioned the sentence saying it was unduly lenient.
At the Court of Appeal on Tuesday 6 July, it was increased to five years and three months. His driving disqualification period was also extended to six years and seven months.
The court agreed the original sentence was unduly lenient for reasons including the seriousness of the injuries sustained by Mrs Haynes, which were not properly taken into account, and that Fenton only returned to the scene because of his mother, and more weight should have been placed on this.
Detective Sergeant Rob Baldwin, from Serious Collision Investigation Unit, said:
“It is unusual for us to refer a case to the Attorney General, but we strongly felt that the sentence in this case did not reflect the seriousness of the crime.
“The unduly lenient sentence scheme is only available for specific serious offences, and requests are considered by the Attorney General who will decide on whether to refer a case to the Court of Appeal.
“I hope that the increase in sentence will be of some comfort to the family of Marcus Haynes, and a deterrent to those who may consider driving whilst under the influence of drugs.”
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