A WHITLEY Wood man has been jailed for eight years for causing death by dangerous driving.
Aaron Clare, 33 and of Lexington Grove, was sentenced at Reading Crown Court after pleading guilty at an earlier hearing. He is also banned from driving for 10 years.
Last year, on Saturday, May 23, Thames Valley Police officers saw a blue BMW being driven by Clare travelling at high speed on the A4 Bath Road and commenced a pursuit.
The vehicle failed to stop for officers.
Shortly afterwards, the BMW was involved in a collision with a pedestrian, 41-year-old Kevin Burgess, who died.
Clare was later found to be over the limit for drugs as well as driving without a license and when uninsured.
He was also disqualified from driving at the time of the incident.
The incident was investigated by the Independent Office for Police Conduct who found no case against the officers involved in the case.
Investigating officer Detective Sergeant Darren Brown, of the Serious Collision Investigation Unit at Thames Valley Police, said: “Clare’s actions in driving were incredibly reckless. He was unlicensed, uninsured and had taken drugs.
“He was pursued by police officers who noticed his erratic driving, but his driving was so dangerous that the officers were forced to cancel the pursuit.
“Tragically, he then went on to cause the death of Kevin Burgess. He took the decision to drive and to put innocent people in extreme danger, and as such he will now be spending a significant amount of time in prison.
“I hope that this needless tragedy serves as a warning to other road users of the consequences of dangerous driving, and I hope that today’s sentence helps Kevin’s family in some way to begin the process of moving on with their lives.”
