A drink-driver who killed an island vet after downing whisky has lost a second bid to serve the remainder of his jail sentence in France.
Thomas Wainwright was caged for 12 years after Theresa Wade died when the high-powered Maserati he was driving ploughed into her van on the Isle of Mull in October 2015.
Wainwright, 32, claimed Theresa had been on the wrong side of the road and caused the accident. But traffic experts disproved his claim.
Wainwright’s family are of Scottish origin but he has lived in France most of his life so he appealed to Scottish Ministers to be moved to a French prison.
Last week, his request was denied following a judicial review hearing at the Court of Session in Edinburgh. The court heard that under French law, Wainwright would have been freed two years earlier if he was transferred.
Theresa’s partner, Charles Pease, has said it is right Wainwright should be left to serve his sentence in the country where he committed the crime.
Charles, 67, said: “Wainwright has at no stage apologised for his actions, his behaviour in court was despicable by first denying liability for having caused her death despite police evidence to the contrary.
“He then tried to blame Theresa who died as a result of his actions. There is no sign of remorse and wanting to go back to France is all about him.
“The impact this has had on Theresa’s family has been very hard. He clearly doesn’t care about his victim or her loved ones and what he has done to those coming to terms with Theresa’s loss.
“Going back to France and serving out his sentence would be a waste of time. He should serve his sentence here in Scotland where he committed the crime no matter how hard it might be.
“Because no matter how difficult it is for him, for Theresa’s family, her friends and all those on the island who knew and loved her, it is so much more difficult.”
The Scottish Government has twice refused a request from Wainwright under the Repatriation of Prisoners Act 1984 to transfer him to the custody of the French authorities. He launched a petition for judicial review against their decision at the Court of Session which was dismissed last week by Lady Carmichael in a written judgement.
Wainwright had claimed that refusing to transfer him to France was “disproportionate interference” with his human rights. He was driving on the wrong side of the road when he crashed into Theresa’s vehicle on the A849 near Craignure.
At the point of impact, he was travelling at 69mph. He had been on Mull along with relatives visiting his sick grandmother when he got behind the wheel.
During his trial, the court heard he had been drinking cider and whisky for eight-and-a-half hours before the crash. As well as the 12-year jail term, Wainwright was banned from driving for 15 years in April 2017 after being found guilty of causing death by dangerous driving.
Following the trial, prosecutor Tim Niven-Smith revealed that Wainwright, who worked as a first officer on the £6.26million yacht MY Mahogany, based in the south of France, had a previous conviction for driving while unfit through drink or drugs. In July, the Sunday Mail revealed Wainwright had already been granted £5,131 in legal aid seeking permission to serve his sentence in France.
Scottish Conservative Highlands and Islands MSP Donald Cameron said: “Thomas Wainwright should have done the decent thing and withdrawn his judicial appeal to save the family further anguish. It was unacceptable that public money continued to be used as this killer sought to escape the country where he committed his crime, and he should now consider this the end of the appeal process.”
Wainwright's legal representatives did not respond to the Sunday Mail's request for comment.
Don't miss the latest news from around Scotland and beyond - Sign up to our daily newsletter here
