Why was my family's killer freed early and deported?
BBC World
March 4, 2026
AI-Generated Deep Dive Summary
A young woman, Summer Mace, has expressed her deep dismay after learning that the driver responsible for killing three members of her family was released early and deported back to his home country, Lithuania. The tragedy occurred in January 2023 when a speeding driver caused a fatal crash on the A47 in Norfolk, claiming the lives of Summer’s mother Lisa Carter, sister Jade Mace, and stepfather Paul Carter. Despite being sentenced to 10 years and six months in prison for manslaughter, the driver, Aurelijus Cielevicius, was released after only three years and deported under the UK’s Early Removal Scheme (ERS). This decision has left Summer feeling betrayed by the justice system, as she believes her family’s lives were undervalued.
The ERS allows foreign nationals who have served a certain percentage of their sentence to be deported early. In this case, Cielevicius was deemed eligible after serving just 30% of his custodial term. Summer was not informed of the deportation decision until three days after
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Originally published on BBC World on 3/4/2026