Mia Howarth’s jail term has been increased from three years to four and a half years after she filmed her 17-year-old boyfriend hanging from the passenger window of her moving car before a fatal crash in North Yorkshire.
The Court of Appeal heard on Friday that Howarth was driving a Peugeot 107 near Brimham Rocks, close to Harrogate, on 12 September 2023 when she used her mobile phone to record Alfie Lovett sitting on the frame of the open window.
She then lost control of the vehicle, which left the road and struck a dry-stone wall. Lovett, from York, suffered fatal chest injuries and died at the scene despite attempts by passers-by to give him CPR.
Howarth, now 21, had admitted causing death by dangerous driving and was sentenced to three years at York Crown Court in March. The Attorney General later referred the sentence to the Court of Appeal on the grounds that it was unduly lenient.
Giving judgment, Lord Justice Popplewell said the original sentencing judge had reduced the term too far to reflect Howarth’s age and had been wrong to take prison conditions into account. The court also found that the delay before she was charged provided only limited mitigation.
Howarth had been 18 at the time of the crash and was carrying three 17-year-old boys on the rural road. The court heard she was travelling at about 35mph while filming and that loud music was playing in the car.
Kelly Brocklehurst, representing the Attorney General, said the sentence needed to punish the offender and deter similar behaviour, despite the significant mitigation in the case.
Defending, Glenn Parsons said the crash was a “profound tragedy” and that Howarth’s grief was “overwhelming”. He said she had been closely involved with the Lovett family and had been a positive influence on Alfie.
Alfie had become a father 12 weeks before his death. North Yorkshire Police previously said his family remembered him as a unique personality who loved making people laugh and lived for “adrenaline fuelled adventures”.
Howarth appeared at the appeal hearing by video link from HMP Low Newton, near Durham, and was seen crying as the court considered the increase to her sentence.
