Driver jailed for Eid crash that killed girl, four

A driver who killed a four-year-old girl in a crash as she walked home from Eid celebrations with her family has been jailed for three years and 10 months.

The siblings of Mayar Yahia watched as she was struck by Javonnie Tavener's car when it mounted pavement in Birmingham in April 2024 as he sped to overtake another vehicle, Friday's sentencing hearing was told.

He waited at the crash scene for nine seconds before reversing, dragging the child. He then fled on foot, phoning his girlfriend to collect him.

At Birmingham Crown Court after reviewing dashcam footage, the judge asked why Tavener had been charged with causing death by careless and not dangerous driving, which has a harsher penalty.

Tavener was also using his phone at the wheel at the time of the incident and had cannabis in his system, the judge said.

The court heard that Mayar died at the scene of the crash in which two other people were hurt. At a previous court hearing, in addition to pleading guilty to causing death by careless driving, Tavener, 23, of no fixed address, admitted causing serious injury by careless driving.

He additionally admitted causing death while driving uninsured.

Mayar's father Babiker Yahia explained, in a statement read to the court on Friday, how the family lived near the crash scene on Upper Highgate Street, presenting them with a "constant reminder" of the events.

"I stayed with Mayar when she was taken from the collision and transported to hospital - that night will remain with me forever," he said.

The bereaved father added that Mayar was the third of four children and was "full of love, always smiling" and "kind to everyone".

He said: "Mayar's siblings were with her at the time of the collision, [they] were young and witnessed it. They have been exposed to so much trauma, and we do not know how this will shape their lives as they grow."

Of the two people Tavener injured on 14 April two years ago, one remained in hospital until 9 May and required surgery. Another stayed at the same hospital until 7 May.

The court heard from the prosecution that Tavener did not call for help from emergency services when he crashed. Instead, after he and a passenger left on foot, he phoned his girlfriend to collect him, which she did.

At about 22:15 BST, about an hour after the crash, Tavener returned to the scene on foot and was arrested.

Sentencing, the judge said Tavener had driven at excessive speed while trying to overtake another vehicle in a 20mph zone at night, "with cannabis in your system and using a phone".

He told the defendant: "The victim was a vulnerable pedestrian - you were on your phone, it was a car with no insurance. You said you were a rear passenger instead of the driver. The passenger's post-incident conduct was as disgraceful as yours.

"You abandoned the car at the scene, after reversing, presumably to try to leave, dragging little Mayar. You walked off calling for your girlfriend.

"The callous way in which you walked away from the mayhem was sickening to watch. You blamed a phantom driver."

The court heard that while overtaking, the front of Tavener's vehicle came into contact with the rear of the other, which is how he ended up mounting the pavement, and hitting the pedestrians.

It was dashcam footage from that other vehicle that was reviewed by the judge before sentencing.

There were audible gasps as the footage was played in court on Friday.

At the same hearing in which he was sentenced to 46 months in prison for the motoring offences, Tavener, for unrelated crimes, was given an additional 18-month jail term in relation to an assault, with three months to run concurrently for battering, bringing his total sentence on Friday to 64 months.

He was also banned from driving for six years.

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