Passenger in car with teen feared she was ‘going to die’

Passenger in car with teen feared she was ‘going to die’

6 July 2016

A CROSSGAR motorist convicted of dangerous driving has avoided being sent to prison by a Crown Court Judge.

Judge Piers Grant said it was with “considerable hesitation” that he had decided not to jail 19 year-old Samuel Robert Elliott, of Thorney Glen, Crossgar, for an incident in which his car overturned and injured one of his friends.

Instead, Judge Grant said he would “hold him to account in a public way” by ordering him to carry out 200 hours of community service and pay compensation of £1,500 to his injured passenger.

Elliott was also banned from driving for three years and ordered to sit an extended driving test following his disqualification after which he will face a two-year restricted driving period.

Downpatrick Crown Court heard how one of Elliott’s passengers had sent a text to a friend warning she feared she might die as he sped along the Ballylone Road between Saintfield and Ballynahinch on July 10, 2014.

Elliott, who was 17 at the time and had just recently passed his test, refused to slow down despite his passenger’s protests that he was driving too fast.

She estimated that he was driving at over 50mph on the road, which was newly resurfaced and had construction signs warning motorists to drive slowly.

A prosecutor said the girl was so frightened she sent a text message to another friend saying; “I am seriously going to die the way he is driving on these back roads.”

Shortly afterwards, the car went airborne and overturned after Elliott lost control.

The court heard that when his passengers escaped from the vehicle, one of whom had suffered a bad cut to the head, his first concern was that they did not make a claim through his insurance policy.

The prosecutor said Elliott tried to blame a hidden dip in the road for the accident and insisted he had been driving at an appropriate speed.

Describing the experience of the accident and court appearance as “chastening”, a defence barrister said it had caused a great deal of stress and anxiety to Elliott’s family, who had acknowledged the hurt caused to the injured girl.

Describing his client as a “grafter”, he said Elliott was in his third year of a plumbing apprenticeship and had worked since leaving school.

Judge Grant said Elliott should be ashamed of his behaviour and for being concerned about his “own skin” immediately after the accident.

“There was a considerable element of showing off. You continued driving in this way despite the warning of others,” he said.

“It was a prolonged period of bad driving. You caused injury to a passenger and it was a stroke of enormous luck nobody was very seriously injured.

“The very graphic message that was sent in relation to the way in which you were driving is a very clear illustration of the way in which you behaved.

“When you had the accident your immediate response was, ‘Don’t tell anybody about this, don’t make claims against me’.

“The court is obliged to consider a custodial sentence. There is no doubt this case warrants a significant period in custody. Your driving on this occasion was absolutely disgraceful.”

Judge Grant told Elliott that R-plates for new drivers existed to “stop idiots, boasters and show offs like you from driving in that way, putting other people in jeopardy.”

However, the judge added that he had also taken into account positive references presented on the defendant’s behalf and a pre-sentence report which pointed out that he presents a low risk of re-offending.