IT WAS a cold October night when Linda Atkinson’s life changed forever.

Her 12-hour shift at Woodlands Neurology Unit had finished and she was eager to get home and put her feet up.

Fifteen minutes into the journey home on her moped she was forced to stop at a red light in St Maurice's Road, York.

Speeding up behind was Steven Briddon, the 28-year-old who would put her into a coma for three weeks and come close to ending her life.

Briddon, of Rose Street off Haxby Road, was in his modified MR2 car and overtaking three taxis at 60 mph when he saw traffic at a standstill in front of him.

He slammed his brakes on but it was too late for 50-year-old Linda and he hit her at 31mph, throwing her into the air and onto his windscreen.

She would never make the journey home and spent the next six months in three hospitals fighting for her life.

Doctors considered turning off her life support machine but her family never lost hope and she pulled through.

Briddon, on the other hand, admitted dangerous driving and was jailed for two years and eight months. He was banned from driving for four years and four months.

The sentence angered Linda, who was severely injured down her left side.

She suffered brain injuries, a speech impediment and has problems with the sight in her left eye.

Linda and her family are today backing our The Road to Justice campaign to get dangerous and careless drivers locked up for longer.

York Press:

Left: Stephen Briddon. Right: Linda's mother in law, Lynn Brolly

Speaking at a relative’s home, in Acomb, she explained how the crash has affected her life.

“It makes me angry that the justice system doesn’t seem to value life at all,” she said.

“It didn’t seem to be much of a punishment when you think he is going to be driving again in four years.

“They should get more punishment for what they do.

“If you do something like what he did to me, you should be banned forever.

“His life is just going to go back to normal.”

It took six months and 24-hour care to get Linda back into her home in Melton Avenue, Rawcliffe.

The long, and at times frustrating, journey has come at a cost for everyone, especially Linda’s partner, Billy, who gave up his job to nurse her back to health.

She still requires around-the-clock support and the family’s pain has not been helped by Briddon’s sentence.

Mr Brolly’s mother, Lynn, who considers Linda a daughter of her own, has her own strong views on the sentence.

“There was a story we read in The Press about a burglar and he got four years for that,” she pointed out.

“This man has changed her life so dramatically and got two years and eight months.”

The anger felt at home is deep-rooted and shows no sign of going away as Linda’s family see her struggle on a daily basis.

“I think what has happened to Linda is far worse and there is no justice in it,” she added.

“It’s like possessions are worth more than someone’s life.

“They don’t even get that much if someone dies.”

Over the next few days families who have lost loved ones in crashes will speak about how they have been let down by the courts and call for more to be done.

We want judges to be given power to hand out longer sentences to those who kill or seriously injure others on the roads, and call on the Government to make this possible.

In the meantime, Linda's struggle goes on but she is focusing on getting her life back on track and hopes to one day work again.

“I see myself getting back to walking again, but I never, ever want to meet him (Briddon),” added Linda, who was responding to Briddon’s suggestion to apologise in person."

To support the campaign, sign road safety charity Brake's petition at https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/156369