Willow, two, Angel, four, Thor, six, and eight-year-old Keavy were passengers in the four-wheel-drive car and died after the crash at Tattershall Bridge.
Gresham, 37, formerly of Chapel Hill, Lincs, was convicted of causing their deaths by dangerous driving following a trial at Lincoln Crown Court.
The court was told he was driving too fast and his vehicle was not roadworthy.
The court heard of the heroic efforts of passers-by who dived into the river to aid the family.
But it was too late for Willow, who drowned, and the three other children, whose deaths were caused by the effects of being in the water.
The court heard that the Land Rover passed an MoT in February last year but a friend had seen Mr Gresham, a mechanic, repeatedly making repairs to a faulty rear axle that had come loose a fortnight before the crash.
It was a bracket snapping on this rear axle that caused the car to swerve as it moved on to the grass verge, the court heard.
The jury was told that Mr Gresham had been driving at between 50 and 60mph along the narrow stretch of country lane in a “defective vehicle”, which made the accident an “avoidable tragedy”.
No comments:
Post a Comment