The family of a retired police officer have branded his killer a coward.

Ray Wilson, 61, was left for dead in a motorbike a crash on the Lewes to Newhaven road in December 2008.

On Friday, the man who smashed into him and then fled the scene walked free from court.

Gerard Le Blount-Kidd, 60, was found guilty of death by careless driving and failing to stop after a two day trial at Lewes Magistrates’ Court on Friday.

He was sentenced to 80 hours of unpaid work and disqualified from driving for 18 months.

The crime carries a maximum sentence of five years in jail.

Mr Wilson, of Peacehaven, served at Brighton’s John Street police station for 30 years and worked in CID, special branch and on the armed response unit during his career.

His devastated family have said Le Blount-Kidd’s sentence did not reflect the magnitude of their loss and said the 60-year-old did not apologise.

Mr Wilson’s son-in-law James Anderson, who lived opposite the family home in Malines Avenue, Peacehaven, said: “Basically he’s a coward who does not appreciate what he has done.

“He never apologised. After knocking my father-in-law down, he didn’t stop for help.

“Ray was a police officer and really believed in the British justice system and this sentence doesn’t reflect what we have lost.

“It took someone who came along afterwards to call an ambulance.”

Mr Anderson said Mr Wilson’s death had devastated his wife Rosaria, daughters Sabrina and Francesca and grandchildren Cameron, Sofia and Luca.

He said: “My mother in law will never recover; they had been together 30 years, since she was 17.

“We want it to be known that he did nothing wrong in that crash. People too often assume a motorcyclist is at fault.

“But the man who killed him has got nothing, just a few hours community service and short driving ban.”

Mr Wilson had taken the Metropolitan Police’s advanced driver training course and was an experienced motorcyclist. He had only bought the Suzuki motorbike on which he died three months before his death two day before Christmas 2008.

Mr Wilson’s daughter Sabrina said: “A lot of people feel motorbikes are dangerous and if there’s a crash it must have been their fault, but my dad was an old man, not a boy racer and the evidence showed he was not speeding.

“If it wasn’t for that man he would still be here.”

Mr Wilson’s family praised the work of Sussex Police family liaison officer PC Andy Smith and Sgt Dave Morgan who brought Le Blount Kidd to justice.

Le Blount Kidd, of Station Road, Stonegate, near Wadhurst, was disqualified from driving for 18 month and sentenced to a 12 month community order with 80 hours of unpaid work.

For the offence of failing to stop, he was given no separate sentence.

The Argus was unable to get hold of Mr Le Blount Kidd, of Station Road, Stonegate, near Wadhurst, for a comment.