Moment 'idiot', 22, filmed himself speeding along motorway with his feet out the window before crashing into car and killing grandfather: Driver jailed for 12 years By TOM LAWRENCE Published: 09:21 AEDT, 4 December 2024 | Updated: 10:30 AEDT, 4 December 2024 e-mail 22 View comments An 'idiot' motoristovertook numerous cars on the wrong side of the road while driving twice the speed limit - before crashing into an elderly couple's vehicle, killing a man. Caleb Mansfield-Marr, 22, sped up to the junction of Ashton Road and Lingard lane in Bredbury, Stockport, in August last year. A woman said she felt her car 'shake' as he drove past, while another witness said he was 'driving like an idiot'. As grandparents Jack and Judith Howe turned right onto Lingard Lane, Mansfield-Marr crashed into them head-on. Mr Howe, 76, was left with serious internal injuries and sadly died weeks later. His wife of 50 years was left with serious injuries, but made a full recovery. Mansfield-Marr, from Hyde, was also hurt and posted a picture online of his injuries. Police later found videos on his phone, including one in which he filmed himself driving with his feet hanging out of the window. He later pleaded guilty to causing death by dangerous driving; causing serious injury by dangerous driving; and causing death by driving while disqualified and without insurance. Caleb Mansfield-Marr, 22, was disqualified from driving when he drove twice the speed limit on the wrong side of the road Prosecutor Robert Smith told Minshull Street Crown Court that at around 11.20am on August 5, Mrs Howe was driving her Toyota Aygo along Ashton Road in Bredbury when she approached the junction with Lingard Lane. Her husband Jack was in the passenger seat. She gave way to several cars before making the turn. Mansfield-Marr, driving a VW Polo in the opposite direction, had already overtaken two cars on the wrong side of the road at speeds of 64mph. The road had a 30mph limit. 'Had the defendant been driving at 30mph, Mrs Howe would have had ample time to complete her turn without the defendant taking any action,' the prosecutor added. The VW Polo collided with the Toyota Aygo sending both cars spinning across the junction. Mrs Howe was seriously injured. Nearby builders used angle grinders and crowbars to get her out of the car. She and her husband were rushed to hospital. She suffered from a number of injuries including a broken pelvis and ribs, and was treated and discharged after eight weeks. Mr Howe suffered multiple injuries to his body. CT scans later showed significant wounds to his spleen as well as a collapsed lung. Despite the best efforts of medical staff, he died on September 25. Mansfield-Marr was also injured and taken to hospital. He later took a picture of himself and uploaded it online with the caption: 'Fractured spine...chipped tooth...cut on head... old man pulled out.' Mansfield-Marr would often film himself while driving, with his feet out of the window, doing doughnuts or overtaking other cars He was later arrested and interviewed and his phone was seized. Officers found a number of videos in which he had filmed himself driving. One video showed him driving at 80mph in the motorway in cruise control with his feet out of the driver's window. In another he filmed himself doing doughnuts in a car park and another showed him overtaking other cars. Speaking of her husband's death, Mrs Howe said: 'The morning of September 25, 2023 changed my life forever, I became a widow. My lovely kind and caring husband of fifty years had passed away. No more companionship, conversations, laughs or celebrations to share together. 'I am healing from my injuries, but nothing can heal my loss of losing Jack, my husband and my best friend.' Their son, Richard, said: 'Our world feels like a dark place without his light,' he said. Sarah, their daughter, said she had driven past the collision but did not realise it was her parents. 'He was a kind, doting and supportive man, and someone I looked up to. I don't think I will recover from this,' she added. And their third child, Louise, said: 'Our family structure is fractured, we are not able to regroup and never will - there will always be one missing piece.' The court heard that Mansfield-Marr had previous driving matters on his record including for speeding and failing to provide driver details. He was banned at the time for six months. An image later recovered from his phone showed Mansfield-Marr holding the letter informing him he was disqualified next to a gas hob, the court heard. Mansfield-Marr has been jailed for 12 years and banned from driving for 16 years Mitigating, John Dye said his client had written multiple letters to the family of Mr Howe apologising for his behaviour. The barrister said he was diagnosed with ADHD which reflected in him 'acting like a teenager'. Judge Angela Nield, sentencing, described Mansfield-Marr's driving as 'frankly appalling', and said: 'This was not a one off but a habit, and a habit to be celebrated on social media. It was a matter of pride.' Mansfield-Marr, of St Paul's Gardens, was jailed for 12 years and banned from driving for 16 years. He will serve two thirds of the jail term before being released on licence. PS Louise Warhurst from GMP's Serious Collision Investigation Unit said; 'Mansfield-Marr is a young man with a truly appalling driving history, and he bears full responsibility for this tragedy. 'During our investigation, we uncovered a number of videos that were taken on Mansfield-Marr's phone showing him driving dangerously at astonishing speeds. 'In one of the videos we found, Mansfield-Marr was driving at speeds exceeding 80mph on a motorway with his feet crossed and resting out of the window while using cruise control. 'This is a dangerous man who believes the rules and laws that all other road users abide by daily do not apply to him. 'At the time of the collision, he was a disqualified driver, but even that did not deter him from driving dangerously and at speeds that were wholly inappropriate for the conditions. He acted so brazenly, not caring that he could be caught. Share or comment on this article: Moment 'idiot', 22, filmed himself speeding along motorway with his feet out the window before crashing into car and killing grandfather: Driver jailed for 12 years e-mail Add commentEven with access to blockbuster obesity drugs, some people don’t lose weight
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — President-elect Donald Trump is underscoring his intention to block the purchase of U.S. Steel by Japanese steelmaker Nippon Steel Corp. , and he's pledging to use tax incentives and tariffs to strengthen the iconic American steelmaker. Trump had vowed early in the presidential campaign that he would “instantaneously” block the deal, and he reiterated that sentiment in a post on his Truth Social platform on Monday night. “I am totally against the once great and powerful U.S. Steel being bought by a foreign company” and will use tax incentives and tariffs to make U.S. Steel “Strong and Great Again, and it will happen FAST!” he wrote. “As President," he continued, "I will block this deal from happening. Buyer Beware!!!” President Joe Biden , like Trump, also opposes Nippon Steel's purchase of Pittsburgh-based U.S. Steel. Biden’s White House in September said that it had yet to see a report from the secretive Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States , which was reviewing the transaction for national security concerns. The committee, which is chaired by the treasury secretary and includes other Cabinet members, can recommend that the president block a transaction, and federal law gives the president that power. Ahead of the November election, the proposed merger carried political importance in Pennsylvania, a critical swing state that Trump eventually won. Biden publicly sided with the United Steelworkers, the labor union, in seeking to reject the deal. When he announced his opposition in a March statement, Biden said: “U.S. Steel has been an iconic American steel company for more than a century, and it is vital for it to remain an American steel company that is domestically owned and operated.” Nippon Steel has said it is the only company that can make the necessary investment in U.S. Steel's factories and strengthen the American steel industry. Both Nippon Steel and U.S. Steel on Tuesday released statements in support of the acquisition. "This transaction should be approved on its merits. The benefits are overwhelmingly clear. Our communities, customers, investors, and employees strongly support this transaction, and we will continue to advocate for them and adherence to the rule of law," U.S. Steel said. The deal follows a long stretch of protectionist U.S. tariffs that analysts say has helped reinvigorate domestic steel, including U.S. Steel. U.S. Steel's shareholders have approved the deal, but the United Steelworkers oppose it. In a statement Tuesday, the union said the deal carries “serious long-term implications for U.S. economic and national security.” “It’s clear that President Trump understands the vital role a strong domestic steel industry plays in our national security, as well as the importance of the jobs and communities the industry supports," the union said. The deal has drawn bipartisan opposition in the U.S. Senate, including from the incoming vice president, Republican Sen. JD Vance of Ohio, although the federal government's objections to the deal have drawn criticism that the opposition is political. Some U.S. Steel workers would prefer Nippon Steel acquire the company, given that it appears to have a better financial balance sheet than another potential buyer, Cleveland-Cliffs. U.S. Steel “provided a very, very good life for our families for a lot of years,” said Jack Maskil, a vice president at the Steelworkers local branch in West Mifflin, Pennsylvania. “And we feel that with the Nippon deal that a lot more families for futures to come will be able to share the same.” West Mifflin Mayor Chris Kelly said he met with Nippon Steel executives and found himself satisfied by their commitments. Located southeast of Pittsburgh, West Mifflin is home to U.S. Steel's Mon Valley Works–Irvin Plant. “There’s no question in my mind that it’s the best deal moving forward,” Kelly said at a panel hosted on Tuesday by the conservative think tank Hudson Institute, where Maskil was also speaking. The Biden administration committee vetting the merger is scheduled later this month to decide on the acquisition or possibly extend the ongoing review. William Chou, a deputy director at the Hudson Institute specializing in relations with Japan, said that "President-elect Trump's view on the deal are important." But given the upcoming deadline, “It's up to President Biden to recognize how this deal will advance the interests of future generations of U.S. Steel union steelworkers.” Trump’s statement came two weeks after Nippon Steel’s vice chairman, Takahiro Mori, visited Pittsburgh and Washington to meet with lawmakers, local officials and workers in an ongoing persuasion campaign. That campaign has included Nippon Steel's promises to boost its capital commitments beyond the original deal and, more recently, a pledge that it won’t import steel slabs that would compete with U.S. Steel’s blast furnaces. As part of its proposed $14.9 billion purchase of U.S. Steel, Nippon Steel also pledged to invest at least $1.4 billion in USW-represented facilities, not to conduct layoffs or plant closings during the term of the basic labor agreement, and to protect the best interests of U.S. Steel in trade matters. Boak reported from Washington.The City Council voted 31-20 to pass a set of sweeping housing reforms intended to create some 80,000 homes over 15 years — clearing the final major hurdle Thursday. The plan, spearheaded by Mayor Adams and the Department of City Planning, is intended to spur the creation of “a little bit more housing” in every corner of the city and has been touted as a solution to the city’s dire housing crisis . City of Yes for Housing Opportunity , known as “Zoning for Housing Opportunity,” was unveiled by Adams last September and described as a much-needed overhaul of antiquated zoning rules worsening the ongoing housing situation. Rent prices have skyrocketed and the city’s vacancy rate is at a historical low. The plan will update decades-old zoning rules that dictate what can be built where, allowing for some 80,000 units to be developed over the next 15 years. That will also come with $5 billion in infrastructure and affordable housing funding secured last month by Speaker Adrienne Adams during prolonged City Council negotiations . “This represents a major step forward for the city to confront our housing crisis,” Speaker Adams said at a press conference shortly before the vote. Thursday’s vote came after months of contentious review by community boards and others during the city’s land use process . The plan eked by a subcommittee and committee vote late month after down-to-the-wire talks that resulted in a modified version of the original plan that relaxed some of the original requirements. “City of Yes” has faced fierce resistance since its introduction last year from more suburban, development-averse outer borough pockets — areas where support for Mayor Adams is otherwise usually strong. A main concern — and a major sticking point for council members from car-reliant areas — was a measure that would have lifted minimum parking requirements citywide without actually doing away with parking. The latest version includes a three-tiered model where parking mandates will either remain unchanged, be reduced or be lifted altogether. Another component allowing for accessory dwelling units such as converted garages and attics was also tweaked to include carve-outs for those in flood-prone areas and others. The Council also secured $5 billion in funding commitments from the city to boost affordable housing and infrastructure in tandem with the expected development influx, something Speaker Adams had been calling for. Mayor Adams said Tuesday the concessions made to push the plan over the line didn’t dampen the success of the plan: “There’s so much you can hit me on. Give me my wins.” The housing plan was the final component of the three-pronged City of Yes plan. The other two parts were aimed at curbing carbon emissions , passed last December , and the second, focused on business development , was passed in June — both with significantly less fanfare.
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