Car thief jailed over deaths

Margaret McAllister: Daughter and grandson were killed

A Belfast Crown Court judge has called for tougher sentences to be imposed on so-called joy riders.

Judge Anthony Harte made the comments on Wednesday after sentencing a 22-year-old County Down man to seven years in prison for killing a mother and her son.

Darren Fields from Crew Hill Way in Ardglass had been drinking heavily and driving a stolen car at high speed when he knocked down Dana Fitzpatrick, 28, and her eight-year-old son on Belfast's Antrim Road last December.

Recreational car theft, known as joy riding, has been a major problem in Northern Ireland for many years.

Judge Harte described the maximum sentence he could impose for the crime as "woefully inadequate".

Kevin Daniel Fitzpatrick: Died in crash

Speaking afterwards, relatives of the victims said they would be calling on the government to increase the sentence limit.

Mrs Fitzpatrick, who was married had two other young children.

She was crossing the street with her son, Kevin, when the accident happened.

She was thrown against a parked car and died at the scene while Kevin was dragged along the road. He died a short time later.