‘Cowardly’ driver went to bed after killing 15-year-old boy, jailed for 40 months

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The driver who cut and killed a 15-year-old boy on his bike was imprisoned.

Leo Mick took out Jack Jones while driving his Volkswagen Tiguan on Manor Drive at around 9.40pm on April 26 this year.

The 15-year-old from Moreton was cycling the familiar road to his aunt’s house after spending the evening watching a movie with his little brother.

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Mick, 22, left Jack with fatal head and neck injuries while speeding between 53 and 55 mph on a 30 mph residential road.

Then he ran away, not even using the brakes, abandoned his friend’s father’s car and took a taxi home, where he went to bed.

Peter Hussey, the attorney general at Liverpool Crown Court, said Jack was riding a yellow and white Carrera bike on Manor Drive while a private rental car was heading south.

Jack’s charter driver passed on the other side of the road moments before he was hit by a Volkswagen “who was being driven fast by the defendant”.

“It’s unlikely that Jack would know what happened,” said Mr. Hussey.

He added that Jack was given “little if any space” and there was an “inevitable risk of collision”.

Mr Hussey said that despite the traumatic impact and apparent nature of the collision, Meek “continued to drive fast” and left the vehicle two miles away in the Moreton area where it was later reported to police after a milkman on Ely Avenue found it with damage. Close-up spoiler, hood, windshield and roof.

He added that the car continued without stopping or even braking, according to a witness.

Mick arrived at his Moreton home three hours later at 12.50 the next morning and “went to bed” but “never reported the shock to the police or even the ambulance service at any point”.

Mr Hussey said that at the time of the accident, the street, “effectively straight”, was “well lit” and the road was dry.

Jack Jones, 15, of Woodchurch, who was killed in a hit-and-run accident

He said Jack, who “loved peace and quiet”, lived with his family close to the crash site and often went to his aunt’s house.

Mr Hussey said: “On April 26, he was at home in the late afternoon with his friends and was watching a movie on TV with his brother.

“At about 9.35pm he left on his bike for his aunt’s where he was to stay all night.”

He took his usual route north on Manor Drive and at the time was wearing black and gray on his bike, which had no lights or reflectors on it.

However, the taxi driver, Paul Stubart, said he was able to see Jack approaching from the other side of the road.

Mr Stubart said he “heard a bang” and “saw the cyclist in the air”.

He ran his taxi and stopped on the road with the hazard lights on to help the young victim.

A street resident who was in his car at the time “heard the crash” and saw the car “blink” and called 999.

Other street residents who heard of the accident also rushed to Jack’s aid and “a number of people did their best to help Jack who was unconscious and badly injured”.

Hussey said a passing police officer tried to revive Jack and an ambulance arrived and took him to Arrow Park Hospital.

He said that Marjorie, Jack’s mother, saw an alert on Facebook about a collision on Manor Drive.

He said, “I knew Jack might be on this road and started calling his cell phone. She received no response.”

Mr Hussey said she then drove to Manor Drive “just in anticipation” and was taken to hospital shortly after midnight and “later the next morning Jack died of serious injuries”.

Police discovered that Mick had been insured for 48 hours on the car that had been registered to his friend’s father, who was vacationing with him in North Wales before returning to take care of a dog.

He admitted not stopping at the crash site and causing death as a result of dangerous driving.

Bernice Campbell, a defender, said it was a “really appalling and sad case”.

In a letter to the judge, Mick wrote that he accepted “full responsibility” and said there was “no excuse” for the harm he caused.

Hundreds of motorcyclists participated in a parade for Jack. (Photo by Andrew Teebay) (Photo: Liverpool Echo)

He told the judge that he “panicked” and said he was a newly qualified driver.

Reading the letter, Mrs. Campbell said, “I found it hard to accept the harsh truth that Jack lost his life through my actions alone.”

He said: I will not be able to escape from what I did.

“I understand that I will receive a lengthy sentence. It is the least I deserve because no amount of time will change what happened to the Jones family.”

Ms Campbell asked the judge to take into account Mick’s guilty plea and that this would be his first prison term.

She said Mick, of Westway, Moreton, was “adamant that he had not seen the victim.”

After the breakup, Campbell said Mick “did the despicable thing of leaving Jack” because he was “afraid and scared”.

Pupils lined up outside Woodchurch High School as the procession passed. (Beck Andrew Tipay). (Photo: Liverpool Echo)

The court heard Mick’s mother, Paula Mick, described him as “remorseful and devastated” after she saw him in custody, adding that what had happened “was out of nature”.

Meek has eight previous convictions including in March 2018 of being a passenger in a vehicle that was driven dangerously.

Judge Andrew Minari, who delivered the ruling, said: “It is not entirely clear why this collision occurred.

“The most likely explanation is that you simply gave him little or no space because you overdid it.

“Jack’s rental car went through, instead of pausing to let it pass, I tried to squeeze through the gap.”

“The driving was very bad from any point of view and Jack and his family paid a heavy price,” Judge Minari said.

The judge said the surveillance camera showed the car traveling at a “really shocking” speed.

Judge Minari said, “Without intending to be more dramatic your car effectively drove out the young cyclist.”

“The reason for this collision is that you deliberately failed to slow the oncoming vehicle,” the judge said.

The judge said his failure to stop was “cowardly and ruthless,” adding, “I was only worried about yourself.”

Judge Minari said: “Jack was clearly a cheerful young man with everything to look forward to.

“His mother and uncle talk about the promises and possibilities he has, hopes and dreams that will not come true now because of your driving style for that night.”

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The judge said Jack was “obviously very likable” and “his family’s life was devastated” by his loss.

Speaking with Mick, the judge said, “I accept that you did not in any way intend to harm anyone that night.”

The judge found the case to fall “somewhere toward the bottom” of Level II in sentencing guidelines, the starting point being five years with a range of four to seven years.

Judge Manari said the pre-sentencing report described him as “fairly immature” and noted that he was a “relatively new driver with limited experience”.

Judge Minari jailed Mick for three years and four months, which were reduced from five years to reflect his guilty plea.

He was banned from driving for three years from the date of his release.

Detective Chief Inspector Mark Drew said: “No verdict can repair the devastation left, but we hope today’s verdict will at least provide some comfort to Jack’s family and friends.

“I hope Mick’s ruling will give him time to think about the consequences of his actions.

“I would also like to pay tribute to the Jack family for the courage and dignity they demonstrated during this process, as well as to the team of officers who brought Mick to justice so quickly.

“Our priority at Merseyside Police is to keep our communities safe and to prosecute any driver who endangers the lives of others.

“Every fatal crash affects the lives of so many people, and we are committed to reducing such accidents and putting those who drive dangerously before the courts.”

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