Family fury as boy, 13, who made chilling brag after he mowed down & killed gran, 60, is locked up for just two years
A FAMILY have slammed a soft sentence given to a schoolboy who made a chilling boast to police when he mowed down and killed a gran.
Marcia Grant, 60, was struck by the vehicle as the 13-year-old attempted to reverse it out of her driveway in Sheffield in April.
She was left trapped under the car as her husband frantically tried to get the teen - then aged 12 - to exit the motor.
But the boy suddenly reversed at speed - causing his foster mum Marcia to suffer catastrophic injuries.
He has now been jailed for two years after admitting causing death by dangerous driving and possession of a kitchen knife.
The boy was originally due to stand trial for murder but prosecutors accepted the lesser plea.
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Sentencing, Mrs Justice May said Marcia's death was a "very bad accident" but accepted the boy meant no harm.
But Marcia's family slammed the soft sentence today, saying they feel "completely let down".
They added: "The last eight months has been torture, our anguish only to be compounded by the reduction in criminal charges brought against the defendant charged with the death of our mother.
"Our mother was killed on her own driveway by a young person wearing a balaclava, carrying a stolen knife, and in the act of stealing her car when he ran her over not once, but twice.
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"Our mum looked after many vulnerable and troubled children during her time as a foster carer and as a civilian. We have seen these young lives be touched by her love, kindness, and generosity.
"Still, this whole ordeal leaves us with so many unanswered questions and we are completely heartbroken that our mother will not get the justice she deserves."
Sheffield Crown Court heard how when he was arrested, the teen asked police: "Is she dead?"
He then added: "Looks like I got my first kill.
“It was an accident, I swear.”
The boy, who claimed to have been a gangster since he was nine, also lashed out a police officer, telling her: "I'm going to f***ing kill your family, you b***h...I don't give a f**k."
The horror unfolded in the Greenhill area of Sheffield at around 7.10pm on April 5.
Marcia had run out her house shouting "someone's taken the car" as she desperately tried to stop the teen, who she had previously been a foster mum for.
Her husband Delroy then also came outside to find his wife on the ground behind the vehicle and the masked boy behind the wheel.
The court was told he "pleaded for him to stop the car" before the boy reversed over Marcia.
Tragically, the gran could not be saved and was declared dead at the scene.
The boy, who fled the scene, later said in a police interview he had "struggled" to drive the car, having never done so before.
He added: "I was in a state of panic, I did not know [Marcia] was behind the car, I never intended to hit her or cause her any harm."
In a victim impact statement, Marcia's daughter Gemma told how Delroy still suffers from flashbacks and feels "angry and guilty" he couldn't save his wife.
Paying tribute, she said: "Between us we lost a parent, grandparent, sister, friend," she adds.
"This loss is felt over and over again.
"This loss isn’t just ours, others outside the family have lost their best friend, anchor, support system."
Son Shaun Grant added: "Since this day our lives have been turned upside down," he says.
"How someone had such disregard for human life.
"I’ve had my best friend ripped away from me, with no chance to say goodbye, with no chance to tell her how amazing she was as a friend, Mum and foster carer.
"Never again will my phone ring and I will see the word Mum.
"Whilst my pain is often unbearable, my dad has been left traumatised, confused and in a constant state of grief."
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