One of the most read stories on The Border Mail website last week, sadly, highlights the heartbreaking reality of what inattention on our roads can lead to.
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Tony Reeckman is dead.
Abby Sturgess is in jail.
There are no winners, just a trail of devastation, felt most by loved ones of Mr Reeckman, who told court their lives were now "dull, empty and sad".
Sturgess was driving near Rutherglen at 8.12am on January 27, 2023, when she rammed into the back of the 59-year-old cyclist.
Investigators later found four messages she had sent on Snapchat in the lead up to the crash. The Instagram application was also recorded as being open on her phone screen in the seconds before the collision.
County Court Judge Peter Rozen accepted the 23-year-old was a young woman of otherwise impeccable character but found her moral culpability for the offending was considerable.
Sturgess' prospects of rehabilitation were excellent and she had shown genuine remorse, Judge Rozen said. But the judge said the only available sentence was a jail term due to the severity of the crime and the need to deter others from committing similar offences.
Sturgess' family members were in tears as Sturgess was jailed for one year and four months. She will be eligible for parole after six months.
Let us all take note of Judge Rozen's message that driving safely is an important responsibility for all motorists.
