A Derby prison officer has been jailed for 28 months after crashing into stationary traffic at 71mph while gambling on his mobile phone, causing a 33-week-pregnant woman to undergo an emergency caesarean section and give birth prematurely, according to Derbyshire Constabulary.
Jack Bentley, 30, of Meadow Way, Derby, was travelling home from Blackpool on the evening of 6 April 2025 when his Ford Focus failed to slow for a queue of vehicles on the eastbound A50 in Hatton, Derbyshire, at around 6:45 p.m. The car struck the rear of a stationary Nissan X-Trail, which was then pushed into the vehicle in front. Phone data examined after his arrest showed Bentley had been visiting online gambling and gaming sites for almost the entirety of the two-hour, 120-mile drive.
The pregnant passenger in the Nissan sustained a fractured pelvis and was taken to hospital, where she delivered her baby girl by caesarean under general anaesthetic. Born at 33 weeks and weighing just four pounds, the infant was transferred to intensive care. The Nissan's driver suffered whiplash, one of the children in the car sustained a fractured ankle, and the family's dog required emergency spinal surgery.
Newborn Spent Three Weeks in Intensive Care After Premature Birth
In a victim impact statement read to Derby Crown Court, the mother described the trauma of the birth and the weeks that followed. She said she had not wanted her baby born that way or that early, and that being separated from her partner and newborn across different hospital wards meant the family missed out on the first moments that new parents expect to share together. She said no parent should face what her family had been through.
The newborn suffered two collapsed lungs in the days after delivery, requiring urgent medical intervention each time. The mother recounted watching helplessly from her hospital bed as staff rushed to treat her daughter. The infant spent three weeks in intensive care before she was strong enough to go home.
Dashcam footage shown in court captured Bentley's Ford Focus veering into the grass verge and swerving between lanes in the period before the collision. Recorder Penelope Stanistreet-Keen told Bentley he had spent almost the entirety of the two-hour drive on gambling and gaming sites. Prosecutor Phillip Plant told the court that mobile phone evidence confirmed the betting activity ran across virtually the whole journey, and that the crash was a direct consequence of that sustained distraction.
Bentley Pleaded Guilty at Derby Crown Court
Bentley was arrested at the scene and later charged with two counts of causing serious injury by dangerous driving. Defence barrister Justin Ablott told the court his client is a former soldier who served in Kenya but left the Army after suffering hearing damage from artillery fire. He had no prior convictions. Bentley conveyed remorse to the court through his counsel, ITV News reported.
On 11 February 2026, he was sentenced to two years and four months at Derby Crown Court and disqualified from driving for three years and two months.
PC Richard Morris, who led the investigation, said the dashcam footage made clear that Bentley would have had enough time to stop had he been watching the road, and described the standard of his driving throughout the journey as appalling, the BBC said.
Morris said the physical and emotional toll on the family had not gone unnoticed, and expressed hope that the sentence would offer them some measure of comfort as they continued to recover.
