Driver fined $15 000 for fatal 2017 crash

Rachid Hayden Kadeem Phillips has been ordered to pay a $15 000 fine for causing the death of Shane Belle in a vehicular accident eight years ago.

Phillips had pleaded guilty to causing the death of Belle by driving a motor vehicle on Dash Valley Road in a manner that was dangerous to the public, having regard for all circumstances, on August 12, 2017.

“The deceased lost his life tragically in a car accident because the accused did not drive in a safe manner in relation to the conditions of the road,”  Madam Justice Laurie-Ann Smith-Bovell said during the sentencing of the Dash Valley, St George resident in the No. 4 Supreme Court.

According to the facts, Phillips, Belle and another man left the Glebe playing field around 2 a.m. on the stated date. Phillips drove his car to the roundabout at Constant and onto a stretch of road that curved slightly to the right. However, he lost control of the vehicle, which continued across the road. The car headed into a grassy area and struck a well casing, causing it to flip and land on its roof.

Phillips and the other passenger, who both suffered various injuries, were able to escape the car, but Belle had to be cut out by Barbados Fire Service personnel.

Saying that Phillips had failed to consider the conditions of the road which was poorly lit and wet, Justice Smith-Bovell also noted that several elements had been considered, including that Phillips had been driving uninsured as the insurance policy had been cancelled before the incident; that another passenger and Phillips had been injured; and that a life was lost.

She added that while Phillips had not been speeding, he failed to appreciate the road conditions at the time.

Justice Smith-Bovell gave a starting sentence of three years and deducted one year for mitigating features, one-third for his early guilty plea, and a year for the delay in the matter being brought to trial. In the end, a fine was imposed.

Ordering him to pay $7 000 of the fine immediately, the judge informed Phillips that the balance must be paid by October 30.

Failing that, he will spend 246 days in prison.