THE sadness, bitterness and sheer frustration suffered by the parents of disabled teenager Kristian Holgate must be immense.
The 17-year-old from Rastrick died a month after he was injured in a road accident. He was in a taxi driven by Rahim Dad who had been charged with dangerous driving and the Crown Prosecution Service intended to increase that charge to causing death by careless driving at Bradford Crown Court.
A judge threw the case out after it emerged the police had sent a letter to Mr Dad just two days after the Kristian was hurt stating he would not face prosecution without any consultation with the CPS.
When Kristian’s father, Kevin, wanted to make a statement to the court he was halted by the judge even though he accepted the parents would feel justice had not been done.
The taxi driver had not put Kristian’s seatbelt on and he was injured when he was thrown out of his chair.
Once again the victim has come a poor second to court bureaucracy and two vital parts of the Criminal Justice System – the police and the CPS – not working together.
They talk so much of a partnership approach. When this fails to happen the results make people lose faith in the British judicial system.
The victim and the victim’s family should be at the heart of this system, not on the periphery.
