A MOTORIST who drove dangerously as he fled from the police caused a terrifying head-on crash, leaving his passenger with life changing injuries.
After stealing the Hyundai car from Penrith, 41-year-old Daniel Green collected a friend and then drove to North Yorkshire, where his desperation to escape had devastating consequences.
He rammed a police car as an officer was attempting to block his progress - before then speeding away on the A59 near York, at times exceeding 90mph. He repeatedly drove towards oncoming traffic while overtaking.
A short time later, Green crashed head on with a Volvo.
The second driver was seriously injured while Green’s passenger suffered such serious injuries paramedics feared he would die. Green fled, leaving his gravely injured passenger trapped in the upturned car.
The man's left arm was later amputated. Airlifted to hospital, he also suffered a raft of other injuries, including nerve damage to his left hand, a brain injury, multiple broken bones, and a punctured lung.
The defendant later admitted causing serious injury by dangerous driving, stealing the car and its keys, an actual bodily harm assault - by driving into the Volvo and injuring its driver - and an affray.
Prosecutor Kim Whittlestone outlined the facts.
The affray happened in the early hours of September 10 last year, when the defendant was involved in an altercation at a property in Penrith, when he grabbed his partner by the throat and “dragged her around.”
He then left the property but returned at 8.30am to demand drugs and to borrow the woman’s phone. It was while at the property that he stole the car keys, and then drove away with his passenger.
At 10am, police later spotted the stolen Hyundai on the A1(M) in North Yorkshire. When two police drivers attempted to “box in” the defendant, he used the car to barge past them, damaging another car and a police car.
He then sped away, repeatedly driving directly at oncoming cars as he overtook other vehicles. It was on the A59, the road that connects York and Harrogate, that he lost control and crashed head on with a Volvo.
Describing that collision, Judge Nicholas Barker said: “You essentially drove over the top of [the woman driver's] vehicle.” The defendant’s actions amounted to “one of the most serious examples of dangerous driving” the court had seen.
The Volvo driver suffered lasting hand injuries, which have left her struggling to do everyday tasks and suffering flashbacks.
In his victim personal statement, Green’s passenger – a man in his mid-30s - said: “This incident has changed my life; I will never be the same again.” He spoke of feeling awful when people stared at his injuries.
“He looks in the mirror and struggles to come to terms with what he sees,” said Miss Whittlestone.
Lewis Bocking, defending, accepted that the defendant’s criminal record - containing 94 previous offences - was “unenviable.”
“At the time,” began the barrister, “he was – in his words – at rock bottom, and using cocaine. His history of offending started when he was eleven.”
But while in custody, Green had begun tackling his issues. He had stopped using drugs and undergone months of intensive therapy under the guidance of a consultant psychiatrist. “He suffers from PTSD and flashbacks, which arose out of the driving incident,” said Mr Bocking.
Green had been diagnosed with unstable personality disorder – a condition characterised by impulsive behaviour, aggression and self-harm; and he was now taking medication.
“He is genuinely remorseful,” said Mr Bocking, saying that Green accepts he failed his passenger, causing his present suffering. “For that, he is immensely sorry,” added the barrister.
From the dock of the court, Green urged Judge Barker to give him a “lifetime driving ban,” saying: “I don’t ever want to get into a car again.”
Judge Barker noted that Green was given “numerous chances” in the past to reform by the probation staff who worked with him.
Referring to the multiple and life-changing injuries inflicted on his passenger, the judge told the defendant: “His victim personal statement demonstrates a clear example of the horrific nature of road traffic collisions.
“This road traffic collision was the result of a decision you made to evade the police. His whole life has changed; it simply will not be the same again. He will continue to require the assistance of others to simply live.”
Judge Barker pointed out that Parliament had deemed the maximum possible sentence for causing serious injury by dangerous driving to be five years jail. “Five years in the maximum for this offence and that is something many observers may find uncomfortable,” commented the judge.
For all his offending, Green, of Leys Court, Bridlington, was given five years jail – 40 months of that being for the driving offence.
He was also banned for 90-months and told he must pass an extended test before he can drive independently again. Green is yet to be sentenced for an additional offence of drug driving, which he also admitted.
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