A motorist who caused a crash in which another driver died was fined £300 by magistrates.

The sentence provoked outrage from relatives of Geoffrey Wallace.

Carpenter Mr Wallace, 44, of St Elmo Road, Worthing, died instantly in the accident on the Falmer Road, Woodingdean, last September.

He leaves a widow, Lynn, and two children.

Kevin Perkins, 26, a care worker, of Crisp Road, Lewes, who was driving a powerful sports car he had hired only hours earlier, admitted a charge of careless driving at the Brighton court. He was disqualified for 18 months and ordered to pay £35 costs.

When the sentence was passed Mr Wallace's family shouted abuse to Perkins in the dock. There were cries of: "You should rot in hell."

They also criticised the sentence: "This is a disgrace. There is no justice."

Magistrate Tony Harris told the court Perkins was not charged with causing death by dangerous driving but only careless driving and there are limited penalties for the offence.

Lisa Ramsarran, prosecuting, said the fatal accident happened when Mr Wallace was driving home in his van. Perkins, who was behind the wheel of a red high-performance convertable BMW Z3, lost control as he was overtaking a line of traffic before a bend and crashed into Mr Wallace who was driving in the opposite direction.

A police investigation concluded the crash was caused solely because of the inappropriate and extended overtaking manoeuvre prior to the bend.

When Perkins was later interviewed by police he claimed he had no memory of the accident.

David Quelch, defending, said Perkins, who lives with his parents, was seriously injured in the crash, suffering fractures and a collapsed lung.

Remorseful

He said: "He is extremely remorseful. We are dealing with a very bad accident in which someone was tragically killed as a result of the driving manoeuvre and the blame does rest with him. It was an error of judgement that led to tragic results."

He appealed to the magistrates not to disqualify Perkins as he would be at risk of losing his job as a shift-worker in a care home for autistic adults in South Chailey if he lost his licence. He said Perkins was required to take some of the adults out in his own car.

After the hearing Mr Wallace's family said they were disgusted with the sentence. His mother Muriel Bailey wept as she told the Argus: "It is totally unfair. He should have got a prison sentence. I hope he never has a good night's sleep again because I know I won't.

"I have five daughters but I only had one son. He has taken my son away from me. I have got little grandchildren who no longer have a father.

"My son was a good, hard-working man. He did everything for his family."

Mr Wallace's step-father Michael Bailey said the family were devastated by the sentence and believe Perkins should have been charged with a more serious offence.

He said: "We are gutted. The magistrates can only sentence on the charge. We have been let down by the justice system.

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