A 96-year-old woman has been spared jail after becoming the oldest person in the UK to be convicted of causing death by dangerous driving.
June Mills of Ainsdale, Merseyside, received an 18-month suspended sentence at Liverpool Crown Court on Monday for killing 76-year-old Brenda Joyce in a crash last August.
Mills lost control of her Vauxhall Corsa outside a bridge club in Formby, Merseyside, mounting the pavement and striking Joyce and 80-year-old Jennifer Ensor.
Joyce died at the scene from a serious head injury, while Ensor suffered minor injuries. Judge Simon Medland KC called the case "an utter tragedy".
The incident took place outside the Formby Methodist Church last August
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The incident occurred on August 2, 2023, as Mills was leaving Formby Methodist Church on Elbow Lane after a bridge club meeting. She told police her accelerator pedal "dropped to the floor" as she manoeuvred around a parked car, causing her to lose control.
She said in a prepared statement "It all happened very quickly and there were people in front of me but I could not avoid hitting them because the car was going so fast I had no control over it."
The court heard Joyce and Ensor had been walking on the pavement after leaving the same bridge club when Mills' car struck them. Mills pleaded guilty to causing death by dangerous driving.
In addition to the suspended sentence, she was disqualified from driving for five years and ordered to pay a £1,500 fine plus £500 in prosecution costs.
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June Mills arriving at Liverpool Crown Court
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Tom Gent, defending, told the court: "This is plainly a dreadfully sad case. Mrs Mills, the defendant, is extremely sorry for what happened. The consequences will haunt her forever. She feels great shame and guilt."
Judge Medland said it "would not profit anybody" to impose an immediate custodial sentence, citing Mills' age, health, and previous good character.
Mills, a former careers advisor, had a long history of community involvement. Gent told the court she had previously volunteered with victims of crime and young offenders. "Recently she has housed, and continues to house, Ukrainian refugees," he added.
The defendant, who appeared in court in a wheelchair, surrendered her driving licence following the crash. She had been driving for 65 years without incident prior to the collision. Mills now accepts she must have mistakenly applied too much acceleration, causing her car to lurch forward and mount the kerb.
In a statement read to the court, Ensor said she suffered minor physical injuries, including tendon damage affecting her ability to play golf. She also expressed a "sense of guilt" at having survived.
Detective Sergeant Andy Roper of the Matrix Serious Collision Investigation Unit said: "Our thoughts and sympathies remain with Brenda's family and friends as they continue to come to terms with the tragic events of last August."
He added: "While nothing can bring Brenda back, we hope that this outcome helps their recovery and provides at least a little closure."
The police requested privacy for all parties involved now that the case has concluded.
