Drink driver receives 12-month sentence for causing death of teacher

A 25-year-old man from Leeds has been sentenced to 12 months in prison after pleading guilty to causing death by careless driving.

On August 1, 2021, special needs teacher Linda Stockdale, 65, was travelling home to Tunstall after babysitting her grandchildren. At around 2:18 am on the A6055 between Catterick and Leeming Bar, her vehicle collided head on with a car driven by 25-year-old Oliver Hartley, whose car had veered onto the wrong side of the road. Hartley’s vehicle was doing at least 72 mph at the time of the crash.

Hartley, from Meanwood, Leeds had taken his mother’s car, without her permission, to visit McDonalds in Knaresborough. He was not insured to drive the vehicle. His alcohol level at the time of the crash was well above the legal limit.

Hartley pleaded guilty to drink driving at York Magistrates’ Court on February 1, 2022, and received a disqualification from driving for 20 months. He had admitted driving without insurance and without the car owner’s permission.

Hartley was later charged with causing death by dangerous driving, to which he pleaded not guilty. Awaiting trial, Hartley chose to plead to the lesser offence of causing death by careless driving, also known as driving without due care and attention. This plea was accepted by York Crown Court, and Hartley was sentenced on October 17, 2025, to 12 months imprisonment, and given a separate 6-month driving ban with mandatory extended retest.

If you are being investigated for causing death by careless driving, solicitors at Auriga Advocates have the legal knowledge and experience to give you the guidance and support you need. Contact us as soon as possible, and let’s talk through the circumstances of your case.