Time to close loophole that prolongs torment of families like Sharlotte’s

Two years to the day that little Sharlotte-Sky Naglis was killed, her mother has launched a bid to close a loophole that prolongs the torment of families like hers.

The St Anne’s Primary School pupil was tragically killed by driver John Owen, then 45, on June 19, 2021, as she walked along the pavement on Endon Road with her dad, Kris Naglis, near their Norton Green home. Sharlotte, six, died instantly, while her father Kris was also injured.

Owen, of The Square, Oakamoor, was speeding, was almost twice over the drink-drive limit, had taken cocaine, was using his mobile phone around the time of the crash and was not wearing a seatbelt. But because Owen was in a coma for some time after the crash, blood samples that were taken could not be analysed without his consent.

READ: When the scales of justice tip in ‘favour of a killer’

Under the Road Traffic Act 1988, blood samples can be taken without a suspect’s consent, but not tested until consent is given. Therefore, the investigation into Sharlotte’s death was delayed, despite it being an offence to withhold blood samples.

Now Stoke-on-Trent North MP Jonathan Gullis has launched a petition – with the backing of Sharlotte’s mum Claire Reynolds – which calls for reform of the Road Traffic Act.

Mr Gullis is urging the government to introduce ‘Sharlotte’s Law’, which would see the condition of consent removed for the testing of a suspect’s blood when death has occurred due to a collision with a motor vehicle.

He said: “The launch of the petition for Sharlotte’s Law today is a landmark moment for Sharlotte’s family and the wider Norton Green and Stoke-on-Trent community. As a collective, I know the pain is still very much present following that tragic day exactly two years ago.

“It should never be the case that this pain and grief is compounded by delays caused by a law which prevents drugs and alcohol from being tested for in a blood sample – simply because the suspect was not able to provide consent.

“We want this changed so that families would not have to endure the same torment if a tragedy like this should ever happen again. Please show your support by signing our petition at www.jonathangullis.com/sharlotte.”

Thousands of people had previously signed a petition to call for Owen’s sentence of six years and four months, which was reduced from nine-and-a-half years because of his guilty plea on the day his trial was due to begin, to be reconsidered. However, the Attorney General and Solicitor General both agreed that the sentence was not ‘unduly lenient’ and refused to refer it to the Court of Appeal.

The maximum sentence for death by dangerous driving was increased to life imprisonment in June last year. However, at the time of Owen’s offence it was between seven years and 14 years for the most serious cases.

Sharlotte’s grieving mum, Claire Reynolds, described the wait for Owen’s blood to be tested as ‘agonising’ and said she didn’t want other families to go through a similar delay.

She said: “When this happened the first thing that ran through my mind was ‘why?’. There were so many questions I needed answering and I wanted to see justice done.

“Being told that because he was in a coma his blood couldn’t be tested until he woke or passed away was devastating. There is only so much police can do without that vital piece of evidence.

“My anxiety was very high; my depression was very low. I thought I would never know when my questions would be answered. It was agonising, it was torture, seeing the investigation slowing down while waiting for him to give consent.