A disqualified driver who crashed his van into a Cambridgeshire ditch, seriously injuring his passenger, has been jailed.
David Stewart, 38, was also under the influence of cannabis as he drove along the B1040 towards Warboys near Huntingdon on 10 December 2021.
The crash happened at about 11.40pm, throwing the passenger from the vehicle and leaving him with a fractured neck and arm, five broken ribs and injuries to his lungs.
When emergency crews arrived, they found Stewart attempting to reverse out of the ditch, and both he and his passenger appeared to be intoxicated.
Stewart, who was arrested at the scene, had broken his left leg in two places.
He tested positive for cannabis, and officers discovered he only held a provisional driving license, which had expired in 2021, and was disqualified from driving.
It was also found that the van’s offside front tyre had a tread depth of 0.7mm – under the legal limit of 1.6mm.
At Huntingdon Law Courts on Thursday (18 May), Stewart, of Gardener Crescent, Fenstanton, pleaded guilty to causing serious injury by driving while disqualified, driving with no insurance, driving with no license, using a vehicle with tread below 1mm and driving with a proportion of a specified controlled drug above the specified limit.
He was sentenced to one year and eight months in prison and disqualified from driving for two years.
DC Dominic Hyde said: “Stewart endangered the lives of his passenger and other road users, as well as himself.
“He showed no regard for anyone when he got behind the wheel, not only under the influence of drugs, but also with no insurance and no driving licence. Both him and the passenger are lucky to be alive.
“The leading causes of serious injury and death on UK roads are speeding, drink and drug driving, not wearing a seat belt and using a mobile phone while driving.”
Find out more about these offences and the penalties they carry and how to report incidents here: https://www.cambs.police.uk/advice/advice-and-information/rs/road-safety/
