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A DRIVER who caused “catastrophic” injuries to a teenage girl when he jumped a red light at a crossing in Birmingham has walked free from court.

Gemma Coates, 15, has been left wheelchair-bound and unable to walk, talk or feed herself after being hit by a van driven by Ben Storey.

Storey, 31, of Larne Road, Yardley , previously admitted a charge of causing serious injury by dangerous driving. He was sentenced to two years, suspended for two years, and banned from the roads for five years.

But the sentence was slammed by Gemma’s grandfather, Andrew Coates, who said the schoolgirl remained in a rehabilitation facility in London.

He said: “He’s walked free with a five-year ban - it is absolutely disgusting. If he had got ten years hard labour that would not have been enough.”

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Birmingham Crown Court heard the crash took place at 7.30am on February 16 at traffic lights on Church Road, Sheldon, as Gemma was on her way to school.

Christopher Lester, prosecuting, said: “She pressed the button on the lights and waited to cross. The lights turned to red and she began to cross, whereupon the defendant’s Ford Fiesta van drove through the red light and struck her.”

Storey stopped, as did a number of other motorists, and he called for an ambulance. A passing doctor went to help Gemma and she was taken to Birmingham Children’s Hospital.

Mr Lester added: “There are medical reports which detail the catastrophic injuries the young woman has sustained, both physically and to her brain.

“There is also a victim personal statement by Gemma’s mother which describes the devastating effect both to her daughter and the entire family.”

He said as far as any recovery was concerned, it was a case of “time will tell.”

Mr Lester added: “She has been in hospital in one form or another every day since the incident. She is receiving ongoing and extensive medical treatment, which she is likely to receive for the rest of her life.”

Judge Roderick Henderson said: “As a result of your criminal behaviour you disobeyed a red light on a pelican crossing, hit her and caused her devastating injuries.

“She was not far from safety.

“She is a much loved daughter, intelligent, kind and generous. I have read the most heart-breaking statement from her mother.”

But he added: “Your remorse is genuine in this case and this was a desperate mistake with desperate consequences, rather than conscious bad driving.”

Sunit Sandhu, defending, said: “This is not a man who shirked his responsibilities that fell upon him in the aftermath of this offence. He continues to be devastated and lives an insular life.”