A dad who killed his own son when he crashed their car on their way to a football match when he drove too fast has been spared jail.
Paul Vines’ had been driving the Ford Galaxy on the B1190 above the 60mph speed limit and ignored signs warning of an uneven road surface.
The 47-year-old lost control and collided with a Mercedes Benz, ending up in a ditch.
Tragically, his son Edward, known as Ted, suffered a fatal head injury in the crash.
Victoria Frost, a passenger in the second car, also sustained serious injuries including four fractured vertebrae and a fractured ankle.
Vines, of Alford, Lincolnshire, wept in the dock as he pleaded guilty to one count of causing death by dangerous driving and another of causing serious injury by dangerous driving at a hearing on February 9.
Handing Vines a two-year prison sentence, suspended for two years, at Lincoln Crown Court on Monday, Judge Simon Hirst said: "The precise speed you were driving was unclear.
"It would appear you were driving in excess of the speed limit.
"What you were doing is driving far too fast for that piece of road in those particular circumstances.
"The signage setting out the road was uneven and you were to reduce speed was not in any way taken in by you."
"Had it not been your son in this case who died and had Mrs Frost not been enormously generous in her position, inevitably you would not be walking out of this court today."
The judge added Mrs Frost is likely to suffer pain and discomfort indefinitely, with her husband and daughter also sustaining injuries.
Despite her injuries Mrs Frost said in a victim statement she did not wish for Vines to go to prison.
She said: "I want Mr Vines to know that everyone makes mistakes in life and there is no hate towards him."
In a statement issued after his death, Ted's family said: "Ted was loved by everyone - he was happy, fun and brilliant and had so many people who loved him.
"On Sunday (January 16, 2022), he was on his way to play football for Alford Under-12s at Branston, as he was a part of that team.
"Everywhere he went, Ted made friends. He was a special part of the community for everyone."
As well as the suspended sentence, Vines was ordered to complete 200 hours of unpaid work and was disqualified from driving for two years.
