Connor Marsden: Hit-and-run driver's sister and girlfriend lied to police
The sister and girlfriend of a unlicensed driver who killed a 10-year-old girl in a hit-and-run who then lied to police about his whereabouts have been handed suspended sentences.
Connor Marsden failed to stop after striking Melissa Tate in Newcastle in September 2019 and was later jailed. Stephanie McGlen, 29, and Amanda Teulon, 32, admitted attempting to pervert the course of justice. They have now both been sentenced to 12 months suspended for two years. The judge at Newcastle Crown Court also handed Teulon, of Park View, Walker, and McGlen, of St Oswald Avenue, Walker, a two-month curfew. The court was told how Marsden, then 24, was caught on CCTV drinking before driving at high speeds through residential streets in the middle of the afternoon before he struck Melissa and fled the area on foot. He was then captured on CCTV running into the home of his girlfriend, Teulon, before fleeing a short time later. When police visited the address she refused to tell them Marsden's name and said nobody else had been at her home. Both she and McGlen refused to co-operate with officers, with prosecutors telling the court that they "deliberately lied" which "impacted the investigation at a crucial stage". Sgt Ray Lowery, of Northumbria Police, said: "This was a tragic case that rocked an entire community and robbed a family of a bright, kind and smart young girl in Melissa. "Amanda Teulon and Stephanie McGlen were part of that community and were fully aware of what had happened but they chose not to help police. "They hindered our investigation and allowed Connor Marsden to evade police for more than 20 hours, by which point any alcohol that could have been in his system had disappeared. "Amanda is a mother-of-six but she has shown no remorse for her actions and pleaded guilty because of the overwhelming evidence that we gathered against her. "No sentence could ever be enough for such callous behaviour but these two women will have to live with their actions on their conscience for the rest of their lives." Related Internet Links HM Courts Service