A drink-driver who drove the wrong way along a dual carriageway in Crawley, causing a serious head-on collision, has been jailed.
Amelia King contravened the ‘no entry’ signs at the end of the A2011 Crawley Avenue eastbound exit slip, at the junction with Balcombe Road.
She continued to travel along the 70mph national speed limit road in the wrong direction for approximately 1.25km, before her white Kia Rio collided with a black Nissan Leaf driven on the correct side of the road.
There were no witnesses or video evidence to the crash, however several other drivers passed King and narrowly avoided a collision with her shortly beforehand.
The incident occurred at about 11.59pm on 19 April and King was taken to hospital with a fractured ankle. There, she provided a sample for analysis which revealed she had no less than 92 milligrams of alcohol per 100 millilitres of blood in her system. The legal limit is 80 milligrams.
King’s sole passenger, a 23-year-old woman from Crawley, sustained a fractured jaw, rib, arm and back, which required surgery and a significant stay in hospital.
She said in her victim personal statement read out in court: “As much as I put on a brave face and smile, deep down this accident has absolutely destroyed me.”
The driver and sole occupant of the Nissan, a 48-year-old woman from Horsted Keynes, sustained a fractured rib and blunt trauma to her abdomen, again resulting in significant hospital treatment.
In her victim personal statement read out in court, she said: “I hope you will have seen the damage caused to my vehicle to understand how lucky I am to have survived this accident. I can honestly say that my life will never return to what it was. The impact of this driver’s poor choices and irresponsible, reckless behaviour has significantly and negatively impacted on my entire family and continues to do so. It is sad to think that this same driver risked her own life, her friend’s life and the lives of others. The ripple effect from this driver’s reckless actions is not something that should be taken lightly.”
22-year-old King, of Smallfield Road in Horley, Surrey, was summoned to court to face charges of two counts of causing serious injury by dangerous driving and driving with excess alcohol.
She pleaded guilty to all charges at Crawley Magistrates’ Court on 30 October, and at Lewes Crown Court on 27 November she was sentenced to a total of two years and eight months’ imprisonment.
She was also disqualified from driving for five years and four months and must take an extended re-test should she wish to drive again.
Her actions were described by the judge as “utterly stupid and utterly dangerous”.
Investigating officer, Detective Constable Kelly Newton, of the Serious Collision Investigations Unit, said: “King made the reckless and selfish decision to drive knowing she was impaired having consumed alcohol, risking the safety of all road users including herself.
“This case illustrates the devastating impact drink-driving can have on people’s lives, and as we move into the busy festive period, acts as a reminder to Sussex drivers to think before you get behind the wheel.”
