Dudley cllr Damian Corfield an hus wife Lynette talk about the heartbreak of loosing their son , Ben.
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00:00We're joined here by, with Councillor Damien Caulfield and his wife Lynette, we are surrounded by lots and lots of pictures of his son Ben, who was killed at an unofficial car meet in Aldbury in November 2022.
00:21Would you like to tell us about, you know, what happened that night, what your experience was?
00:26Yeah, of course I can, yeah. Well, I mean, that weekend, Ben had been away for the first time with his friends, he was 19, their first weekend away.
00:36He'd been to Liverpool, they'd had a great time. He'd come back on the Sunday dinner time, as you can understand, totally tired, they'd been up all night over the weekend enjoying themselves.
00:47And he actually, he slept all afternoon and most of the evening, really, you know, where you're sitting now.
00:56Come to around nine o'clock and he'd been playing on his Xbox and he'd come downstairs and he'd decided, you know, he was going to pop out for an hour.
01:05So he'd shouted up to his mum and I that, you know, he was popping out for an hour.
01:11He said he was only going to be an hour because on the following Tuesday, he'd got a final assessment for a job with Tesla.
01:20So Ben loved cars and anything with wheels on, you know, so he'd got a life-changing job, a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to work for Tesla.
01:28So he'd got to make his way down to Northampton on the Monday, overnight and then be there for the Tuesday morning.
01:34So he said, I only pop out for an hour, mum, dad, and as he'd normally do, he'd shout up and say, love you, and he'd be, love you back.
01:41And his mum would say, drive safe, and he'd say always.
01:45And, you know, 20 to 10, Ben went out the door.
01:49It was just a normal evening, you know, Ben, you know, Ben would go out with his friends and we didn't, you know, we didn't expect anything less.
01:57As the night went on, I was a little bit restless, if I'm true, you know.
02:03He was only going to be out an hour and half past 11 and 12 o'clock had come, and I thought, where is he?
02:08But I wasn't going to ring him.
02:10I mean, he was 19, you know, and the last thing he'd want is his dad, pestering him on the phone.
02:15So, you know, I left it be.
02:19We got to one o'clock and the room doorbell had picked up somebody outside.
02:25I thought it was Ben that had come back.
02:29So I looked on my phone for the video and the room doorbell.
02:34The doorbell went, and it was two traffic officers.
02:38So that would be about 10 past one.
02:40Two traffic officers.
02:41I come downstairs, Lynette was asleep.
02:43I come downstairs, I open the door.
02:44They asked my woman by name.
02:47And asked whether they could come in.
02:48I said, yeah.
02:48I said, what's happened?
02:50They said, can we come in?
02:51I said, yeah, come in.
02:51They said, is your wife here?
02:52I said, yeah.
02:53Can she come downstairs?
02:55I said, yeah.
02:55No, but once I shouted Lynette down, she come down and she sat on the set to me.
02:59And they said, do you want to sit down?
03:02And I said, no, I don't want to sit down.
03:03I said, what's happened?
03:05By this time, you and me could tell something.
03:07Well, I could.
03:08I mean, I think in the back of my mind, I thought this.
03:10I thought there'd been an accident and they'd been injured.
03:13I didn't think for one minute that we were going to give the devastating news that we were.
03:19But they said, there's been a serious incident in Aubrey tonight.
03:25They said, do you know the A457?
03:26And I do.
03:27I just couldn't think.
03:28And they said, do you know the junction of Crystal Drive?
03:32I just couldn't think.
03:33I thought, what are they going to tell us next?
03:35And they said, well, anyway, there's been a serious, serious incident in Aubrey tonight.
03:42A man has been charged.
03:44A man has been arrested on the scene for dangerous driving.
03:49And they said, there's no easy way to tell you this, but your son Ben's been killed alongside another young girl.
03:54And two of us have been seriously injured.
03:58Our lives just come to a complete halt all of a sudden.
04:02I'm not, you know, I was standing there, just by the stairs there.
04:07I fell to my knees, Lynette was on the settee, totally distraught.
04:11And I said, how do you know it's Ben?
04:14I said, his car's still here.
04:15They said he wasn't in the car.
04:18He was a pedestrian.
04:20You know, and I said, well, what happened?
04:22You know, I remember saying to the officers, was the driver drunk?
04:29And I thought at the time, well, why would I ask that?
04:32And they said, no.
04:33They said he wasn't drunk.
04:33They said he was racing an high-powered car.
04:36He lost control, mounted a pavement, and he hit it then.
04:40The pain, and you just can't accept it.
04:46I asked them how they knew it was Ben, and they said there was somebody at the scene who knew Ben, and they'd looked on his Facebook profile, and it was definitely Ben.
04:55They said, well, you just can't take it in.
05:00And, you know, I said, well, are you sure?
05:03Are you definitely sure it's Ben?
05:04They said, yeah, it is your son.
05:07Then I said, well, you know, can we go to the scene?
05:09They said, you won't be able to go to the scene tonight.
05:11They said, there'll be forensics there.
05:13There'll be a road closure and different things like that.
05:18And sort of left us two then.
05:19They said there'd be a liaison officer that would come to see us in the morning.
05:25Lynette and I really didn't say a lot to each other.
05:27I think we were just totally and utterly in disbelief.
05:32You know, that we waited seven years to have Ben in between Shannon and Ben, and he was a miracle to us.
05:38You know, we never thought for one minute that we'd have an issue having a second child.
05:42We wanted a son and a daughter.
05:44Shannon wanted a brother, you know, a little brother that she could look after.
05:49And as I say, seven years went by, and we were lucky.
05:52After those seven years, we had him, so he was our complete foundation.
05:57Was it a difficulty in having another child, wasn't it?
05:59Yes, there was, yeah.
06:00Yeah.
06:00Yeah, so, as I say, seven years we were trying.
06:03And actually, we were about to start fertility treatment.
06:07Yeah.
06:07And two weeks prior to that, Lynette didn't feel very well.
06:11And, you know, I jokingly said to her, I said, you're pregnant, you aren't?
06:14She said, you couldn't be anyway.
06:15As it meant, we went to the local doctors, I did a pregnancy test, and she was pregnant.
06:21But she was under a specialist, so we went for a scan, and it didn't show a baby at that stage.
06:26So we had a few worrying weeks waiting until we went back for a second scan.
06:32And as it happened, Ben was on his way to us, and that was our miracle.
06:37So, you know, after waiting so long, all three of us built our lives around him.
06:42You know, and he was the very thing that we lived for.
06:44So for somebody to come and knock on the door, and to tell you that the very thing that you lived for,
06:50the light of, you know, all of our lives, is gone,
06:53then you just can't, you just, your mind can't take it in.
06:58You just can't comprehend it.
07:00And as I say, you know, we asked whether we could go to the scene on the night,
07:04because we still just disbelieved.
07:07The police had said we couldn't, but we did.
07:09We went down to the scene, and I went up to the officers where the road closure was.
07:17I think they pretty much picked up who I was.
07:19I did say who I was, but they picked up who I was.
07:22And I said, my son's been killed here tonight.
07:26I said, so I've been told.
07:27I said, okay, I just want to see him.
07:29I just want to know it's been.
07:31And they said, well, we can't let you through.
07:33They said, there's three and six down there, and we can't let you through.
07:36And I said, right, okay.
07:38And so we've come away.
07:40But I drove further around the estate into Crystal Drive,
07:43and we pulled up behind a car, a white Audi.
07:48And I thought that was a, I remember saying to Linette,
07:50I wonder whose car that was, because that was a young person's car.
07:54And as it worked out, that was Ethan's, Ben's friend.
07:58That was the car they'd gone in.
07:59So they literally parked in Crystal Drive,
08:02and only walked a number of yards around the corner onto the A457.
08:07Literally, they'd only just got there.
08:09And this D'Alma Mori, this driver that was convicted,
08:13was driving a highly powered, highly modified car.
08:16And unpredictable, to use the judge's terminology,
08:20in proximity of, you know, of pedestrians.
08:24So they'd only just got around the corner.
08:27They'd only just parked the car and walked around the corner.
08:29And we believe that there was,
08:32it was a static car meet that was advertised on Snapchat.
08:36And the static car meet was on the industrial estate,
08:39right opposite.
08:40So we can only really surmise that they'd walk around the corner,
08:44and they was intent then on going on the crossing
08:46and getting onto the other side of the road.
08:49But I say that, you know, we can only speculate on that.
08:52Had he talked to you about what he was going to do that night?
08:54No.
08:54No.
08:55No, no.
08:57And to be fair, you know,
09:00you know, we see lots and lots of these car meets.
09:03Ben liked cars.
09:04I mean, as I said, I spent a lifetime in road transport.
09:07You know, we've got a vehicle repair business.
09:10As soon as Ben could walk,
09:11he wanted to be with his dad in the lorry.
09:12He wanted to be in the car.
09:13You know, he wanted to use the tools.
09:15And, you know, like every young, you know,
09:17a lot of young people now, you know,
09:20he liked his own car.
09:21He liked working on his own car, you know,
09:23and that was his passion.
09:25You know, but, you know,
09:27certainly I'm sure Ben wouldn't have gone
09:30and certainly we wouldn't have let him go
09:31to what was an illegal car meet.
09:34But as I say, as far as we understand,
09:36it was advertised as a static car meet.
09:38So a meeting where all the cars were lined up
09:40on industrial estate.
09:41And obviously, you know,
09:43they go and look at them and, you know,
09:46compare, you know, compare different vehicles.
09:50Yeah.
09:52And what's it just tell me a bit about,
09:53like, you know, when Ben was growing up,
09:54what was the lad was he like, you know,
09:56what were his interests and his loves and his passions?
10:07Yeah, look, Ben was, as I said,
10:10Ben was a fun-loving lad.
10:11I mean, we waited so long for him.
10:14And I was the lucky one.
10:16Ben wanted to emulate everything that I did.
10:18Yeah, Ben was a fun-loving lad.
10:28You know, I was the lucky one.
10:29He wanted to emulate everything that I did.
10:32You know, and as I say, you know,
10:33Ben would have been the fourth generation in our family
10:36to join the road transport industry.
10:40You know, as soon as he could walk,
10:42even before he could walk,
10:42he wanted to be in the lorry with me.
10:44You know, we're in the car.
10:45Or he'd got a love for car keys.
10:47You know, if we changed our car
10:50or, you know, we've got a different car,
10:52then Ben wanted the keys.
10:53So, you know, from a younger age,
10:55anything mechanical and anything with wheels on,
10:57Ben wanted to do.
10:58You know, and it was spending time with me.
11:00And that's, you know, that's what he wanted to do.
11:02And as I say, you know,
11:04my grandfather started the family business.
11:07You know, and then you go through,
11:08he was proud to be the fourth generation.
11:10You know, two weeks after we lost him,
11:12we got his HGV booked.
11:13You know, got a truck for him to drive
11:16that I ended up driving to the funeral,
11:19which was, you know,
11:21absolutely soul-destroying.
11:23But as I say, you know,
11:25he'd got this chance of a lifetime
11:26to work for Tesla.
11:27So he'd really got,
11:28and he wanted to follow me as a counsellor.
11:31My grandfather was a counsellor,
11:33and obviously I am,
11:34and Ben was really proud as well
11:35that, you know, he wanted to do that.
11:38He had chaired the youth council
11:39for a number of years.
11:41He was a youth counsellor.
11:41But he was also committed as well
11:44to give him back
11:45to, you know,
11:47to society and community.
11:49You know, and Ben decided,
11:51I think at 15,
11:52to put himself up for election
11:54as Dudley's Youth Member of Parliament
11:56and got elected.
11:57And he did that well.
12:00And then, I mean,
12:00Ben got involved with other things that,
12:03you know,
12:03other things that affected young people,
12:05one of which was knife crime
12:07he was quite passionate about.
12:09So Ben being Ben,
12:10then decided,
12:11well, what could he do
12:12to, you know,
12:13to interact with that directly.
12:16He put himself up for election
12:17for the Youth Police
12:19and Crimes Commissioner.
12:21He wasn't successful,
12:23but, you know,
12:24he got over 60,000 votes,
12:25I believe, at the time.
12:27You know,
12:27but a massive impact
12:28for a young lad of 15,
12:2916 to do,
12:30something like that,
12:31you know,
12:32was absolutely amazing.
12:33You know,
12:34for what he achieved
12:35as a 19-year-old lad,
12:37you know,
12:38some of us had wished
12:38to achieve in a lifetime
12:40and he'd really done that.
12:42But, you know,
12:43in Ben's earlier years,
12:45he'd had a bit of a tough time
12:46at school
12:47because he was a big lad
12:48and he carried a lot of weight
12:49when he was younger
12:50and he'd been bullied.
12:54And, obviously,
12:55Annette and I were worried about him
12:56and, you know,
12:57we took him to the local doctors
12:58and they referred him
12:59to a local charity at that time
13:01which was the Watts Centre
13:02in Starebridge
13:03and they're a specialist charity
13:07to offer mental health intervention
13:10and counselling
13:10for age groups
13:13between 8 and 21.
13:16So Ben went there
13:16and he'd had some counselling
13:18and, you know,
13:19he managed to get over
13:20the issues with that.
13:23But unbeknownst to us,
13:25whatever Ben had got
13:27from that counselling,
13:28Ben continued to do that.
13:29with other young people.
13:31He counselled young people.
13:33You know,
13:33and to think that you've got
13:34700 people
13:36turn up to a young person's funeral
13:37and we had,
13:39I couldn't even count
13:40the amount of
13:41number of young people
13:43that knocked the door
13:44and wanted to come and see us.
13:45But three young people
13:47really stick vividly
13:49in our minds
13:50and if you were to ask me the name,
13:51I can't remember it,
13:52but I remember them
13:53knocking on the door
13:53and saying,
13:55you know,
13:57Mr.
13:57Rissi-Scoffield,
13:58we felt compelled
14:00to come and see you.
14:02And they did.
14:03I said,
14:03can we come in?
14:04I said,
14:04yeah,
14:04come on in,
14:05no problem.
14:06And they sat down
14:07and we asked,
14:08they said,
14:08well,
14:08how did you know Ben?
14:10And I said,
14:11well,
14:11actually,
14:12they said,
14:12if it wasn't for Ben,
14:14we wouldn't be here.
14:16And we said,
14:17what did you mean?
14:17I said,
14:18we were suicidal.
14:20Ben's counselled us.
14:21He's given us his phone number.
14:23He spoke to us
14:23throughout the night.
14:25He'd been out there
14:26and took them in his car
14:27and he spent time with them,
14:29coffee and a chat
14:30and different things.
14:31So he'd obviously
14:31picked up these skills
14:33from this counselling
14:34that he'd had
14:35from the What Centre.
14:36You know,
14:36to think that you've got
14:37a young man of 19
14:38that was doing
14:39that sort of thing
14:40for others,
14:41you know,
14:42and he put others
14:42before himself.
14:44You know,
14:45it's such a loss
14:46to society.
14:47It really is,
14:48you know.
14:48He was just special.
14:50He really was,
14:51you know.
14:51And loving.
14:52He's more so loving.
14:53Oh, he was.
14:53Never afraid to
14:55come up to you
14:56and just give you
14:57the biggest story
14:57called Kiss.
14:59He wasn't ever
14:59by the show
15:00and he's loving emotions,
15:02was he?
15:02No, he wasn't.
15:02Just,
15:04just the best.
15:06And I think,
15:06to be fair as well,
15:07it's, you know,
15:08the loss to us
15:09as a family
15:10is,
15:11is undescribable.
15:12But, you know,
15:13you've got a community
15:14that's grieving Ben.
15:17You know,
15:17you've got a town
15:18that's grieving.
15:19He's touched
15:20so many people,
15:22you know,
15:22even now,
15:23you know what I mean?
15:23There's so many people
15:24come to us,
15:25you know,
15:25daily and say,
15:26you know,
15:27they've interacted
15:27with Ben
15:28one way or another
15:29and how positive he was
15:30and a lovely,
15:32well-mannered young man,
15:33very helpful,
15:35you know.
15:35so it's been such
15:36a massive impact.
15:37It really has.
15:39What was the job
15:40with Tesla
15:41that he was looking
15:41to do?
15:42A technician.
15:43So, yeah,
15:44a mechanic.
15:45He was a fully trained
15:45mechanic.
15:47So, yeah,
15:47so the modern term
15:48for a mechanic
15:50now is a technician.
15:51Yeah.
15:51And I think
15:52with his futuristic
15:52technology
15:54and things,
15:55obviously,
15:55with vehicles
15:55like Tesla,
15:56then Ben,
15:58you know,
15:59Ben was really
15:59looking forward to that.
16:00And I remember him
16:01saying to my dad,
16:02because a lot of
16:02modern car repairs
16:04now are on the computer.
16:05Yeah.
16:05And he said,
16:06I'd give me a Model X
16:07or a Model 3
16:08or whatever.
16:09And he was telling me
16:09about the gold windows.
16:10Yeah.
16:11And he said,
16:11they'd kick the vehicle
16:12out with tools,
16:13you know,
16:13and he'd be travelling
16:15around dealerships
16:16with his diagnostic computer.
16:18So he's really,
16:19really looking forward to it.
16:21You know,
16:21and he,
16:22as I say,
16:22you know,
16:24he would have been
16:24the fourth generation
16:25in our family
16:26and he was going
16:27to drive the truck.
16:28He wanted to drive
16:29the truck as well
16:29as I did.
16:30And his granddad
16:31and his dad
16:32and my grandfather
16:34as well.
16:35So he's a great grandfather.
16:36You know,
16:36so he wanted to do that
16:37as well.
16:38He got so much positivity,
16:40you know,
16:41and so much to,
16:43you know,
16:43to achieve in his life.
16:45You know,
16:45he got a really,
16:46really,
16:47really positive
16:48future in front of him.
16:50You know,
16:50lots of things
16:51were falling in line
16:52for him
16:52and he was really
16:53excited about that.
16:54Yeah.
16:54Now we've launched
16:55the petition today
16:56for Ben's Law.
16:58Perhaps you'll explain
16:59what you hope
17:00that will achieve
17:01and why that
17:02will make a difference.
17:03Yeah.
17:03Well,
17:04I think the petition
17:05is a significant
17:08step forward
17:09and I'll call it
17:11a tool really
17:11in what we need
17:12to achieve.
17:13But certainly
17:13the petition now
17:14is the first thing
17:15we need.
17:16We've seen now
17:17that there's
17:18temporary injunctions
17:19put in place
17:20especially down
17:22by the A457.
17:25But that's still
17:26a restricted injunction
17:27and what we're
17:27finding now
17:28is that,
17:30you know,
17:30there aren't
17:30the police numbers
17:31that we need.
17:32So what's happening
17:33is if these type
17:34of events are organised
17:35then they're being
17:36dispersed
17:36and by dispersing
17:38these driving practices,
17:40these vehicles,
17:41you know,
17:41these people racing
17:42these vehicles around,
17:43they're only going
17:43from one area
17:44to the next.
17:45So the big hopes
17:46with the petition
17:47is this,
17:47it's going to be,
17:48we want Ben's Law
17:49to be a blanket ban
17:51to not only target
17:53the drivers
17:54for dangerous driving
17:55and taking part
17:56in that,
17:56but also the organisers
17:58and another one,
18:00a key part of it
18:01as well,
18:01is those that attend it.
18:03You know what I mean?
18:04If we,
18:04with those three elements
18:06there,
18:07those are the driver
18:07behind these,
18:09you know,
18:09behind these practices
18:11and as part of it,
18:13I mean,
18:13as part of the injunction
18:15now and I hope
18:15this would be a part
18:16of the Ben's Law
18:18if we can get
18:19the support we need
18:20is there's four,
18:22there's four parts
18:23of that then.
18:23You can have
18:24the car crushed
18:25and I know
18:26they've recently
18:27changed the legislation
18:28there where
18:28a car can be confiscated
18:30within 24 hours.
18:33So you've got to,
18:34if you're,
18:35if you're attending
18:35these events
18:36or you're driving
18:37there,
18:38taking part
18:39or you're
18:40the spectator
18:44or you're an organiser,
18:46you know,
18:47care limits
18:47a lot of it is,
18:49you know,
18:49a lot of these cars,
18:50these are not cheap cars,
18:51people spend tens
18:52of thousands
18:53of pounds
18:53on these cars.
18:55So the fear
18:55of that car
18:56being crushed
18:56as part of that
18:58would be a big one.
19:00The second one
19:00to have your licence
19:02took away,
19:03you know,
19:04the third one
19:04really to have,
19:05you know,
19:06far more severe
19:08sentencing than that.
19:10I know at the moment
19:10with the,
19:11with the,
19:12with the,
19:13the injunctions
19:14in place,
19:15you can have up to
19:16two years
19:16in imprisonment.
19:17I think that should
19:19be at least five
19:20as a deterrent,
19:22you know,
19:23and those elements
19:24of that there
19:25then going forward
19:26and fines.
19:27So that's the four
19:28things there
19:28and a,
19:29and a large fine,
19:30you know.
19:32What offence
19:32would that be for?
19:32If the imprisonment
19:33five is imprisonment,
19:34what offence
19:34would that be for?
19:36Well,
19:36that would be part
19:37of the ban.
19:38So as,
19:38so as the injunction
19:40is now,
19:41so obviously you can,
19:42you know,
19:43as part of the injunction,
19:45you can be jailed
19:45up to two years
19:46and a five thousand
19:48pound fine,
19:48I believe it is.
19:49Yeah.
19:50Under that injunction,
19:51if we were to have
19:52a blanket ban,
19:52so they'll have that
19:53nationwide blanket ban,
19:55then those same
19:56elements in that,
19:57you know,
19:58people have asked me
19:59that,
19:59you know,
20:00do I think
20:01that Ben's law
20:02and this blanket ban,
20:05do I really think
20:06it'll make a difference?
20:08Yes,
20:08I do.
20:09And as I've said to you,
20:10and I said,
20:10this is the key
20:11first element of that.
20:12Police are restricted
20:13in the powers
20:14that we've got.
20:15If we've got a
20:16nationwide blanket ban
20:17and we've got these,
20:19you know,
20:19these key elements
20:21of that,
20:22as I've explained to you,
20:23then not only then,
20:26you know,
20:26if we've got a strong
20:27stance with that,
20:29then obviously then,
20:30and I've worked with,
20:31I'm working at the moment
20:32now with West Midlands
20:33Police,
20:34there's police forces
20:35right across the country
20:37that are dealing
20:38with the same issues.
20:39This is not just one area.
20:41And obviously then,
20:42I think what you'll find,
20:43and I'm doing work
20:44with Simon Foster
20:45as well,
20:46the Police and Crimes
20:46Commissioner,
20:47he's putting more
20:48officers forward now.
20:50And I think the need
20:52for more officers
20:53will be more evident
20:54with that.
20:55So that'll give the police
20:56more powers.
20:56We need more policing.
20:57But another big thing
20:58is this,
20:59you know,
21:00and part of my role
21:01with the council,
21:02I was cabinet member
21:03for highways
21:04and local authorities
21:06get a certain amount
21:07of funding per year
21:08to maintain the highways,
21:11resurfacing,
21:12and a small segment
21:13of that
21:14is to implement
21:16road safety measures
21:16like safe routes
21:17to school programmes,
21:19crossings,
21:21and speed calming measures.
21:25But I,
21:25you know,
21:26I've already wrote
21:28to the Transport Minister
21:29and her predecessor
21:31asking for extra funding
21:34for the local authority
21:36because of the plight
21:38that we're doing
21:38now here with road safety.
21:40And I had a copy
21:41and paste letter back
21:41that basically said,
21:44you know,
21:44well,
21:45thank you for your,
21:46you know,
21:46thank you for sharing
21:49your concerns with us,
21:51but there is no funding.
21:52And I think,
21:53you know,
21:53we need a government
21:55funding pot
21:55directly
21:56right across
21:58the country
21:59solely for road safety measures.
22:02But I certainly think
22:03that Ben's Law
22:03is going to be
22:04the first hurdle
22:05for us to get over.
22:07You know,
22:07if we can get that,
22:08we need 10,000,
22:09we need 10,000 signatures
22:11as far as I understand
22:12for it to be debated
22:14in Westminster.
22:15I have contacted
22:16all four local MPs.
22:19I haven't heard back
22:20from them yet,
22:21but I certainly have worked
22:22with three of them already.
22:24And they,
22:25you know,
22:25two of which
22:26knew Ben.
22:27So I hope that
22:29they'll come on board
22:30because when we get
22:31to that stage,
22:32then we're going to need,
22:33they're going to be
22:34our voice in Westminster
22:35and that's where
22:36we need it to,
22:37you know,
22:37I've only got
22:38just a certain
22:40size catchment area
22:41where I am as a councillor.
22:42So we need that
22:43strong voice in Westminster.
22:45But,
22:45you know,
22:46I can't impress it
22:48firm enough
22:49that,
22:50you know,
22:50this,
22:52you know,
22:52Lynette and I
22:53never thought
22:54for one minute
22:54that we would be parents
22:56that we'd ever have
22:56a knock on the door.
22:58You know,
22:59and I think
22:59subconsciously
23:00you think in your mind,
23:01you see people
23:02that are killed
23:02on the roads
23:03every day of the week.
23:05You know,
23:05it's harrowing,
23:06it's upsetting to see,
23:08but you never ever think
23:09for one minute
23:10that it's going to be you.
23:11But the reality is this,
23:13on the 20th of November,
23:152022,
23:16at 10 past one
23:17in the morning,
23:18we had a knock on the door
23:19and that was real.
23:21And that's been real
23:22ever since.
23:23And it could be anybody.
23:25That knock on the door
23:26could be,
23:27you know,
23:27to your parents,
23:28it could be a knock
23:29on the door,
23:30you know,
23:31to say that your brother
23:32or sister's been killed,
23:34your mum or dad,
23:35your nan or granddad,
23:36it could be anybody.
23:37And the reality is this,
23:39you know,
23:40it can't be anybody.
23:42And that's,
23:43you know,
23:44that's the real facts of it.
23:47And for people
23:48who are watching,
23:49what would you say,
23:50you know,
23:50why,
23:52why,
23:52what would you say
23:53to encourage them
23:54to sign this petition?
23:55Why should they sign it?
23:57For a number of reasons,
23:58but for the first one's this,
24:00you know,
24:01speed limits
24:03are the law for a reason.
24:06You know,
24:06this is not targeting drivers.
24:08I've spent a lifetime
24:09on the roads,
24:10in every road transport.
24:11I've been a professional driver
24:12for 35 years.
24:14If I'm not breaking the law,
24:16then I've got nothing
24:16to worry about.
24:17You know,
24:18but we've also got to think
24:19about the safety
24:20as well as the most vulnerable
24:21in society,
24:22pedestrians,
24:23cyclists,
24:25motorcyclists,
24:26you know,
24:26and the disabled.
24:27These are the ones
24:28that use the,
24:29you know,
24:30the pavements
24:31and,
24:32you know,
24:33crossings
24:34and things
24:35of that nature.
24:36You know,
24:37so,
24:37you know,
24:38and as I've already said,
24:39this can affect anybody
24:41and it will.
24:42People are getting killed
24:43on our roads
24:44because of dangerous drivers
24:45every day of the week,
24:4724 hours a day.
24:48So,
24:49you know,
24:49I really,
24:51you know,
24:51ask people out there
24:52to sign this petition.
24:55You know,
24:55this is to ensure
24:56all our safety,
24:57everyone's safety.
24:59And we're not targeting
25:00just one group of people.
25:01We're not talking
25:02one age group.
25:03You know,
25:04with car cruising
25:05and street racing,
25:08people automatically
25:09think that it's associated
25:10with young,
25:12inexperienced drivers.
25:14The driver
25:14that killed Ben and Liberty
25:16and seriously injured
25:17Ebony and Ethan
25:19was 54.
25:2054.
25:22That man knew better.
25:24He wasn't an inexperienced driver.
25:26You know,
25:27at 54,
25:28he knew that
25:29if he was going to drive
25:29a high-powered car,
25:31highly modified car,
25:32highly powered car
25:33in close proximity
25:34to pedestrians
25:35and lose control,
25:37he knew very well
25:38at least
25:40he's going to seriously
25:40injure somebody
25:41but more than likely
25:43to kill.
25:44You know,
25:44so it's not,
25:45we're not just targeting
25:46one age group.
25:48And I think it's
25:49road safety now.
25:51You know,
25:51I ask people
25:52to look out there,
25:52watch the news every night,
25:54listen to the radio.
25:55You know,
25:56there's a different story
25:57every night.
25:58Somebody's being killed
25:59on the roads
26:00for one reason
26:01or another,
26:02you know,
26:03with dangerous drivers.
26:04And road safety
26:06has to be paramount
26:07for us all.
26:08You know,
26:09especially with modern cars
26:10as well now,
26:11you know,
26:11over the last 20,
26:1225 years now,
26:14the power,
26:14the power of cars
26:15changed.
26:16You know,
26:17the speed of vehicles
26:19that they're capable
26:20of has changed.
26:20So we need this.
26:22We need to,
26:22we need to make sure
26:23that we keep up
26:24with that technology
26:25and we've got
26:26this law in place
26:28that can give us
26:29the safety
26:29that we all need.
26:31I think for me
26:32is as well
26:33asking people
26:35to sign it
26:36from my mum's
26:37perspective.
26:39I want,
26:39I wouldn't want
26:40another mum
26:41to be in my position
26:42wondering every day
26:44now
26:44what my son
26:46would look like
26:47now.
26:48Seeing his friends
26:49growing up,
26:50I'm never going
26:51to see my son grow.
26:52I'm never going
26:53to get to experience
26:55him
26:55having the love
26:57of his life,
26:58getting married,
26:59having a child.
27:01Please be wise
27:02in when
27:03you get,
27:05you know,
27:07be wise
27:08and cherish
27:09every moment
27:10with your children.
27:11You know,
27:16I can't remember.
27:18It's tough
27:19and to be fair,
27:20I mean,
27:20to add on
27:21to the message
27:21to people,
27:22really,
27:22the reality,
27:23the reality
27:25of this
27:25is this,
27:25that,
27:26you know,
27:26we had the
27:26knock on the
27:27door at
27:27ten past one
27:28in the morning,
27:29two traffic
27:29officers to tell
27:30us there'd
27:30been a serious
27:31incident,
27:32then to tell
27:32us that our
27:33son,
27:3419-year-old son
27:35we waited
27:35seven years
27:36for,
27:37had been killed,
27:38then we had
27:39to wait
27:39nine days,
27:40nine days
27:41of,
27:42you know,
27:45disbelief,
27:46you know,
27:46that Ben
27:47was definitely
27:47going to come
27:48back through
27:48the front door,
27:48we hadn't lost
27:49him,
27:50nine days
27:50before we
27:51could identify
27:52him,
27:53then to be
27:53told then
27:54that we
27:56wouldn't be
27:56able to,
27:57we wouldn't
27:57be able to
27:58be with him
27:59in person,
27:59we'd have to
28:00identify him,
28:01we wouldn't be
28:01able to touch him,
28:02we'd have to
28:03identify him
28:03through a
28:04plate glass
28:04window,
28:06you know,
28:06nine days of
28:07uncertainty,
28:09then on the
28:09day of that,
28:11you know,
28:11we were lucky
28:12that they did
28:12let us go in
28:13with him,
28:14you know,
28:14our wonderful
28:15son,
28:15beautiful son,
28:16lying on a
28:17mortuary slab,
28:18you know,
28:19we stroked
28:20his hair,
28:21he looked
28:21exactly the
28:22same,
28:22all I wanted
28:23him to do
28:23was open
28:23his eyes
28:24and say,
28:24dad,
28:25I'm okay,
28:26dad,
28:26do you want
28:27a hug?
28:28You know,
28:28and the reality
28:29of that is
28:29this,
28:30that my son
28:31is never
28:31ever going
28:32to put his
28:32arms around
28:32his dad
28:33again,
28:34you know,
28:35and then
28:35from then
28:36on to,
28:37you know,
28:38to have a
28:39court case
28:39going forward,
28:41you know,
28:41a driver
28:42that in his
28:43initial interview,
28:45lied at his
28:45initial interview,
28:47he said he
28:48wasn't at a
28:49car meet,
28:49he said he
28:49was on his
28:50way back
28:50from work,
28:51on his
28:51way home,
28:53in Albury,
28:53and he
28:54lived in
28:54Solil,
28:55then when he
28:56had the
28:56first opportunity
28:57to do the
28:58right thing,
28:58he killed
28:59two young
28:59people,
29:00Ben 19,
29:02Liberty 16,
29:04you know,
29:04and seriously
29:05injured,
29:05Ethan and
29:06Ebony,
29:07when he had
29:08the first
29:09opportunity to
29:09plead guilty,
29:11to do the
29:11right thing,
29:12he then pleaded
29:12not guilty,
29:14and then we
29:14had the most
29:15harrowing,
29:1515 months
29:17would it have
29:17been,
29:18you know,
29:19knowing then
29:19that we'd
29:20have to go
29:20to court,
29:21we'd have to
29:22plead for
29:22our son,
29:23you know,
29:24we'd have to
29:24plead for
29:25what happened
29:25to our son,
29:27you know,
29:27and even up
29:28to the day
29:29of the court
29:29case,
29:30he was still
29:31going to plead
29:32not guilty,
29:33and force us
29:33as poor
29:34families,
29:35force us
29:36through the
29:36most excruciating
29:38pain again,
29:38on top of the
29:39loss of our
29:40children,
29:40you know,
29:42through a
29:42trial,
29:44you know,
29:44that we can
29:45only thank the
29:45police and the
29:46investigations team,
29:47that they built
29:48up such a
29:49concrete case
29:50against him,
29:51that in the
29:52last,
29:52and we're
29:52talking the
29:53last five
29:53or ten
29:54minutes,
29:55that he
29:56pleaded guilty,
29:58you know,
29:59and we had to,
30:00you know,
30:00Lynette and I,
30:02and Liberty's
30:03mum and dad,
30:05we got up and
30:06we read out
30:09our victory
30:10impact statements,
30:11our loss,
30:13you know,
30:13what we've
30:13lost,
30:14you know,
30:15and I addressed
30:15the judge,
30:16and,
30:17you know,
30:17I said to the
30:18judge,
30:19I said,
30:20Your Honour,
30:20I said,
30:21we haven't
30:23achieved a
30:23conclusion today,
30:24I said,
30:25for my wife,
30:26myself,
30:26or my daughter,
30:27I said,
30:27this man has
30:28killed my son,
30:29I said,
30:29he stole our
30:30future,
30:31I said,
30:31and he's
30:32delivered us a
30:32life sentence,
30:34one of which
30:35there's no end,
30:36and that's
30:37the reality,
30:39you know,
30:40after all that,
30:41our son's
30:42never coming back.