Greater Manchester PC jailed for dangerous driving after boy injured

Khia Whitehead suffered a life-changing brain injury

A police officer who seriously injured a schoolboy while driving at twice the speed limit in response to a 999 call has been jailed.

Khia Whitehead, who was 15 at the time, was struck by a police vehicle being driven by Sarah De Meulemeester in Stockport on Boxing Day in 2020.

He was left with significant injuries and now requires around-the-clock care.

De Meulemeester, 26, was sentenced to two-and-a-half years at Liverpool Crown Court.

Judge David Aubrey KC called the case a "terrible tragedy" and said "no sentence can ever begin to compensate for the devastation your driving has caused or the lives that have been cruelly shattered".

The Greater Manchester Police (GMP) officer was found guilty of causing serious injury by dangerous driving following a trial at the same court in April.

Many of Khia's friends and family were in court for the sentence and were in tears as victim impact statements were read out.

Khia's mum, Laura, said: "No mother should have to sit beside her child on life support, begging for them to stay alive because you can't go on without them."

The trial heard the GMP officer had been responding to a domestic incident involving a man with a knife at the time.

Wrong way

De Meulemeester was only a basic level police driver - meaning she was not qualified to use police manoeuvres or drive above the speed limit.

However, while responding to the emergency call she drove the wrong way round a traffic island and had been driving over 60mph in a 30mph zone moments before she hit Khia, the court heard.

Khia, who is now 18, was left with life-changing injuries and cannot speak or walk.

De Meulemeester initially told investigators she had been travelling at a "normal road speed" and declined to answer further questions about the manner of her driving.

The Independent Office for Police Conduct's regional director Catherine Bates said: "While today's verdict brings these criminal proceedings to an end, the effects of this collision on the lives of Khia and his family will last a lifetime.

"Our investigation has ensured PC De Meulemeester was held accountable for her dangerous actions that day, which had devastating consequences for Khia.

"Now criminal matters have concluded, it will be for Greater Manchester Police to arrange misconduct hearings for PC De Meulemeester and another officer we found has a case to answer for gross misconduct in relation to their driving prior to the collision."

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