Cassie's Law

Cassie McCord was just 16 years old when she was killed in a road collision in Colchester on February 7, 2011.

She had been walking in the town centre with a friend when an out of control car mounted the pavement and struck Cassie, trapping her between it and a shop wall.

Three days earlier, police officers had spent two hours trying to persuade the 87-year-old driver not to drive his automatic Vauxhall Astra again after he was involved in a minor incident, failed an eye test and had to be driven home.

The officers had no powers to immediately suspend his licence and sadly Mr Horsfall chose not to heed their advice. Cassie died in Queens Hospital the day after the crash.

Now Cassie’s mum Jackie McCord has started a petition in a push to change the law and give police the power to immediately suspend a licence if driving standards fall well below acceptable levels.

Essex Police is fully supporting Jackie in her push for Cassie’s Law and senior officers have already raised the issue at a national level. In this audio clip Jackie McCord, Assistant Chief Constable Sue Harrison and Chief Inspector Richard Phillibrown explain why they are supporting Cassie's Law.

A change in the law would give police officers the ability to immediately suspend a licence until a medical examination can be held where drivers are found to be potentially unsafe.

So far more than 15,000 people have signed the online petition but 100,000 signatures are needed before a debate will be heard at the House of Commons.

Essex Police is encouraging anyone who wishes to support Cassie’s law to sign the e-petition at http://epetitions.direct.gov.uk/petitions/21244