Drunk driver who left police hero with life changing injuries is approved for temporary release
A police officer who had to have a leg amputated after being mown down by a drunk driver has reacted with anger after discovering the person responsible is now eligible for temporary release on licence just ten months into a five year sentence.
Hayden Brown, 25, had been drinking, taking drugs and inhaling laughing gas, when he ploughed into Police Constable Tom Dorman in the early hours of September 2 2018.
Last December Brown was found guilty of three counts of causing injury by dangerous driving at Reading Crown Court and jailed for five years, which was the maximum available to the judge.
But the officer, who received a police bravery award, has reacted with astonishment after receiving an email informing him that Brown could soon be allowed out on temporary licence.
Despite not being eligible for release until May 2022 - the halfway point of his five year sentence - Brown has now been moved to an open prison, meaning he is likely to be released from custody regularly on day release.
Sgt Dorman said: "I received an email last week telling me that he had been moved to an open prison. I don't actually care what sort of a prison he is in as long as he is in, but it means that he is now eligible for temporary release on licence.
"I was basically given four days to suggest any conditions I might like to see attached to the temporary licence. But the fact they gave me just four days suggests that he is likely to be out fairly soon.
"I don't have any right of appeal. Where is the deterrent? If police officers, who are the victims of crime treated like this, what chance do ordinary people have of making their voices heard?
"Brown has never shown any remorse and he has never even accepted any responsibility for what he has done and yet he is still rewarded by being allowed to move to open prison and apply for temporary release on licence.
"The five year sentence he got was a joke, but it was the maximum available under the law and I was able to take some comfort that even being released at the halfway point meant he would spend two Christmases and two birthdays in prison.
"But now he could be allowed home for this Christmas and what is stopping him partying like he did before he crashed into me?"
Sgt Dorman is writing to the Prime Minister and Home Secretary to ask them to look into the case.
Craig O'Leary, Thames Valley Police Federation chairman, added: "We are shocked and appalled to hear that Brown will not serve the full five years he was handed.
"Brown chose to get behind the wheel, having drunk alcohol and taken cocaine. In doing so he drove into two police officers.
"His actions that day changed Tom's life forever, and yet Brown has spent only a few short months behind bars.
"How is this justice for these officers? How can he be deemed safe to roam society? How will his sentence act as a deterrent?
"Police officers around the country will be disgusted to hear that Brown will walk free after such a short time behind bars."
Criminals handed determinate prison sentences are released half way through their jail terms.
They become eligible for release on temporary licence two years before their release date, although it is not automatically granted and they can be recalled at any time.
A Ministry of Justice spokesman said: "Drink drivers ruin lives which is why we are introducing tougher sentences so they feel the full force of the law.
"Offenders in open jails face strict conditions and can be returned to closed prison if they breach them."
