William Brown Jr died in December when he stepped onto the Sandgate Esplanade to collect a football and was hit by a van.
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00:00A suspended sentence for Stuart Powell.
00:03Fourteen weeks behind bars, but suspended for 12 months for the driver who hit 7-year-old
00:09William Brown Jr and fled the scene in Folkestone.
00:13Here he is, leaving court the day he pled guilty back in May.
00:17It was in December when William was playing in his garden and stepped out onto the road
00:21to collect his football.
00:23He was hit by Powell's van, which propelled him into another car.
00:27Despite all efforts to save him, he died there.
00:30Powell from St Mary's Bay fled the scene and would go on to tell the police he panicked
00:35when he called 999 the next day.
00:38William's mother, Laura, continues to campaign for tougher sentences and a 20mph speed limit
00:44in Sandgate Esplanade where William was hit.
00:46We're trying to do a petition to change the laws to extend hit and run sentencing so things
00:54like today wouldn't happen, it would be elevated to a crown court as opposed to a magistrate's.
01:00There's no sentence that would bring William back or, it's just, there's nothing really
01:06apart from that that could make a positive change, but you know, Stuart in prison wouldn't
01:11help anyone.
01:13What this can possibly do is shine a light on our justice system and how it needs reform
01:17and change needs to come sooner rather than later, no more children or adults need to
01:22be left for dead on our roads and this hopefully can shine that light.
01:27William's death rocked the local community, the whole county and even the country, with
01:32his funeral broadcast live on KMTV, thousands watched on.
01:38I love you and I will always carry you with me.
01:45His burial was signed off by the King himself and a visit from former Home Secretary James
01:50Cleverley to the ice cream parlour created in his memory.
01:54Rather than mourn him, we try and think of positive things that William would love.
01:59Today's Sports Day, his favourite day of the year, so it's very bittersweet, ironic that
02:04it's today, but I know that he'll be dancing somewhere in heaven, just cheering us on and
02:10wanting us just to keep on moving with positive steps only, that's what he would have wanted.
02:16Despite the devastation of losing their child, William's family have shown forgiveness and
02:22finally today, found some peace.
02:25Abbey Hook for KMTV in Folkestone.