Family of heavily pregnant nurse killed in M8 crash 'disappointed' following lorry driver sentencing

The children of a pregnant nurse who was killed in a crash on the M8 are “still waiting” for their mum to come home.

Evelyn Brown, from Lanarkshire, was 34 weeks pregnant when she died from her injuries following a crash involving a lorry on December 18, 2023.

The 41-year-old was stopped on the hard shoulder on the M8 westbound near Hermiston Gait in Edinburgh when her Kia Sorento was hit by a HGV.

Trevor Norgate, 58, was behind the wheel when the vehicle drifted onto the hard shoulder and collided with the mum-of-two’s car.

Ms Brown and her unborn child did not survive the incident.

Family friend Ann Nwankwo described Ms Brown as a “hard-working” mum-of-two.

“Her children are still waiting for her. Anytime they see a car coming up, they will check through the window, thinking that it is their mum,” she told STV News.

“They’re too young to know what has happened. She was a very hard-working lady, her life was just taken away like that.”

Norgate was handed a two year and eight-month sentence at the High Court in Edinburgh.

Ms Nwankwo said she was “disappointed” in the ruling.

“We didn’t expect this short sentencing, we felt they would’ve done more,” she said.

“They said there are guidelines on how they do things but this is not what we expected. We are quite disappointed.”

On Friday, Norgate of Bellshill, Lanarkshire, appeared for sentencing in Edinburgh. Defence advocate David Nicolson KC told Lord Armstrong about how his client was “utterly devastated” about the loss of Evelyn’s life.

Prosecutors stated Norgate had “allowed himself to become distracted” prior to the collision, although it is not known how.

He appeared in the dock at the High Court in Glasgow last month and pleaded guilty to a charge of causing death by dangerous driving.

Judge Lord Armstrong deferred sentence for reports on Norgate’s background after hearing how the accused already had six points on his licence. He was given them for using a mobile phone while driving.

Lord Armstrong also banned Norgate from driving for four years and eight months.