IT is difficult to imagine a more callous act than a driver running from the scene of an accident and leaving someone lying badly injured.

Such cowardice can kill, as moments lost by any delay in alerting emergency services and bringing medical help could easily prove fatal.

For relatives and friends of the accident victim, anger felt against someone guilty of such a thoughtless act must be almost uncontrollable.

They would rightly demand, and be entitled to expect, punishment to be imposed that would fit the crime.

In the case of Aso Mohammed Ibrahim, a glaring hole in the law has been spotlighted.

He ran from Ravenglass Close, Blackburn on November 24 and left 12-year-old Amy Houston pinned under his black Rover, fatally injured.

There was no evidence to support a charge of dangerous driving and Ibrahim, who was already on bail for driving while banned, pleaded guilty to driving while disqualified, without insurance and failing to stop after an accident.

The maximum sentence available to magistrates was six months in prison, which they reduced to four because he had pleaded guilty at an early opportunity.

Hyndburn MP Greg Pope wants a new offence with tougher sentences and Jack Straw has criticised the "low" penalty.

This must be addressed to bring others the justice that the Houston family have been denied.