The contempt with which some hold human life

Ali Altuntas was jailed for four years recently for running over and killing a cyclist, and then leaving the scene of the accident.


This man, who is from Chingford - the "posher" part of Waltham Forest - caused the death of a cyclist by his dangerous driving, and then left him dying to try to escape the consequences. On top of this he got rid of the car and has never admitted his actions, therefore putting the relatives through a trial.


Now, four years may seen quite a long time, but just consider what he did. Leaving someone seriously hurt or dying as a result of his own behaviour is utterly despicable. And yet he isn't the first and won't be the last person to do this. I believe that this type of behaviour needs to be taken very seriously. It is not difficult to imagine cases where the time taken between the the person fleeing and someone else getting help could be the difference between life and death.


I think fleeing the scene of a serious accident where someone died should carry more than 1 year for perversion of justice. It should be treated as manslaughter in its own right.


This man will be probably out in 2 years. No doubt the weak punishments for lawless drivers will allow him to drive again soon afterwards.


What kind of human leaves another dying  alone in the road? Words cannot describe the contempt I feel for this type of behaviour. And to then know this only carried one year imprisonment shows the utterly screwed up priorities we have when it comes to road use.