A YOUNG man who caused the death of a girl when he crashed his car two years ago has been banned from the road for drink driving.

Lewis Hardy, of Bog House Farm, Eggleston, near Barnard Castle, County Durham, pleaded guilty to driving while over the legal limit.

When the 19-year-old appeared before Bishop Auckland magistrates yesterday, he was given a 12-month community rehabilitation order and an 18-month driving ban. He was ordered to pay £55 costs.

A petrol station attendant, he was charged after he crashed his Ford Fiesta into a fence on the outskirts of Staindrop after drinking in Barnard Castle, on July 21.

He committed the offence after completing a 12-month ban for careless driving.

Two years ago this month, Belinda Blagg, 17, of Ayresome Street, Middlesbrough, was a passenger in the car Hardy was driving when he crashed into a wall, in Eggleston. She died later from her head injuries.

At the time, Hardy pleaded not guilty to death by dangerous driving.

The prosecution accepted a guilty plea to a lesser charge of careless driving and he was fined £500.

During the case, his defence solicitor told Teesside Crown Court that Hardy thought about the accident "every hour of every day" and had apologised profusely for what had happened.

Belinda was with a 14-year-old friend on a trip to Middleton-in-Teesdale where she met Hardy and some friends.

She was flung through the rear window of the car, which had a plastic sheet over it after vandals had smashed the glass the night before.

At the time, Belinda's parents branded his sentence as "pathetic", saying their daughter's death was a life sentence for them.