THE widow of a man killed by a "reckless" driver today expressed her anger and dismay after the driver was jailed for 12 months.

Betty Whitaker said the punishment did not fit the crime and sent out entirely the wrong message.

University student Caroline Sturrs sped at more than 60mph through the Selby village of Burn, which has a 40mph limit.

Sturrs, 21, of Silver Street, Whitley Bridge, lost control of her VW Polo on a bend on the A19 at Burn before colliding head-on with David Whitaker's Peugeot 205.

Mr Whitaker, 61, of Balne, near Whitley, was dead on arrival at hospital, while Mrs Whitaker has only just recovered from her injuries ten months after the crash, York Crown Court was told.

Recorder Andrew Robertson, QC, said Sturrs had shown a "reckless disregard" for the safety of other road users.

Today Mrs Whitaker, 69, criticised the sentence as "too lenient".

She said that Sturrs would be out of prison in six months while she and her daughter, Helen, 29, had been given a life sentence.

Mrs Whitaker said: "Six months for my husband's life is not justice. We have been robbed of our retirement years together."

Recorder Mr Robertson told the court: "This was in my judgement far more than a momentary error of judgement. The facts speak for themselves."

Sturrs, now a psychology graduate, pleaded guilty to causing death by dangerous driving. She was also banned from driving for two years.

At the time of the accident, she was travelling home from work at a mushroom farm, followed by colleague Wayne Woodhouse, 22, of Ferrybridge.

Woodhouse pleaded guilty to dangerous driving and was ordered to do 200 hours community punishment and banned from driving for 18 months.

The judge said his driving did not contribute to Mr Whitaker's death, but he had pleaded guilty to driving too fast, too close to Sturrs' car and to chasing after her.

Bryan Cox, for Sturrs, said the accident had changed her from a happy woman aiming at a professional career to one who needed medical treatment for depression.

She would have to live with the consequences of what she had done for the rest of her life.

For Woodhouse, Robert Terry said that he could not explain why he had driven in the way he had.

Updated: 14:49 Tuesday, September 25, 2001