The family of a young girl who was killed by a “cowardly” drunk driver who spent £1,500 on alcohol hours before the hit-and-run crash have said they will “never heal” from her death.
Edward Tully has been jailed for 12 years for causing the death of a 12-year-old girl when he hit the rear of her family’s car while travelling well over the speed limit on Colney Hatch Lane in north London – before running away on foot from his crashed vehicle.
Shocking footage of the incident shows the moment that Tully’s car crashed into the back of the family car sending it spinning across the road.
The 30-year-old from St John’s Wood was sentenced to 12 years’ imprisonment at Southwark Crown Court on Friday.
Following the case, the unnamed girl’s family said while the sentence brought some closure, “it will never heal us”.
In a statement issued through the Met Police, the family said: “The pain will stay with us. We don’t want this to happen to any other family.
“We will miss our daughter. No sentence will bring her back. We implore anyone thinking of doing the same to think twice before drinking and driving.
“They don’t know the harm and will never understand the devastation it causes. We waited for over two years for justice due to the cowardly actions the defendant took.”
The court had heard how Tully was driving his Bentley Continental at 56mph – 26mph over the speed limit –when he hit the rear of a Vauxhall Astra containing the girl’s family on August 20 2022.
Tully then fled the scene.
The collision caused catastrophic injuries to the girl and life-changing injuries to her father. The girl sadly died in hospital days later.
Her mother and brother received minor injuries.
Tully handed himself into Colindale Police Station shortly after the incident and was charged with causing death by dangerous driving and causing serious injury by dangerous driving the day after the crash.
The court heard that Tully spent £1,500 on alcohol in a bar hours before the crash.
CCTV footage from before the crash showed Tully leaving a bar with a bottle of alcohol in his hand.
He is later seen swaying as he gets some money out of a cash point.
Further dash cam footage shows the moments before Tully crashed. His car can be seen serving before speeding around a corner on Colney Hatch Lane.
In one clip Tully’s car can be seen crashed into a bollard with smoke coming out of the front. He is then seen running away along the pavement away from the collision.
He pleaded guilty at Harrow Crown Court on October 25.
Detective Sergeant Nush Puvitharan, from the Serious Collision Investigation Unit, said: “Tully’s selfish actions have sadly resulted in the loss of a young life.
“My thoughts are with the family, dealing with the devastating loss of their daughter, who had a bright future ahead of her.
“I hope the sentence acts as a deterrent to those who chose to drink and drive. Drink driving has a horrific impact and destroys the lives of others.
“My team worked extremely hard to put strong evidence before the court and I want to thank them for their work.
“Met officers remain committed to keeping London safe and bringing perpetrators to justice.”
