Mum who bragged she was a 'rally driver' before 80mph crash is jailed

Mum who bragged she was a 'rally driver' before 80mph crash is jailed
Source: Daily Mail Online

A mother bragged she was a rally driver before rolling her car at 80mph while under the influence of drink and drugs - with five children packed inside the vehicle.

Faye Dawson, 50, took off at 'incredibly high speed' before crashing the five-seat Vauxhall Corsa at 11.20pm while showing off in March last year, a court heard.

The dangerous driver failed to slow for roundabouts, crossed on to the wrong side of the road and narrowly missed parked cars in a residential area as her passengers begged her to slow down.

A dashcam recorded cannabis-addled Dawson bragging 'I am a rally car driver and a b*h. If you die I am not responsible. This is what I do every day on a Friday night after a drink.

'Now I am on alcohol and have had a smoke I am even more dangerous. If you are not comfortable do not come in my car'.

The children, who Dawson was giving a lift home, could be heard shouting, 'Slow down, slow down' prior to the crash in Cheadle, Staffordshire.

Dawson had collected the teenagers from a property in the town to drive to Meir, Stoke-on-Trent.

She was jailed for 14 months on March 25. Dawson was also handed a 55-month driving ban and must take an extended retest.

'Arrogant' Faye Dawson bragged 'I am a rally car driver and a b*h. If you die I am not responsible', a court heard

Stoke-on-Trent Crown Court heard four of the children - who were aged 14 and 15 - were injured. One of them was detained in hospital and suffered a spine fracture.

In a victim statement one child said: 'I felt trapped and terrified. I felt powerless. I remember screaming. I genuinely believed I was going to die. I have suffered flashbacks and panic attacks. I was shaking uncontrollably.'

The girl who suffered a fracture in her back said: 'I thought I was going to die. I had to have time off school to recover.

'I feel very anxious in vehicles. I have nightmares and flashbacks. I had to live with back pain for six months.'

Dawson, from Cheadle, pleaded guilty to dangerous driving.

Robert Holt, mitigating, said Dawson has become a recluse which has exacerbated her post-traumatic stress disorder.

Mr Holt said: 'She will never drive again, such is the traumatic effect of what took place. She feels genuine remorse and empathy with the people in the car that night. She has no interest in driving again.'

Judge Richard McConaghy told her: 'Your appalling arrogance caught up with you. When doing nearly 80mph you lost control of the car and rolled it.

'You injured a number of your passengers. It was a miracle that you did not kill somebody.

'You were recorded shouting about what had happened to your car, not about what had happened to the children who were in it.

'You are lucky that you have been charged with dangerous driving and not causing serious injury by dangerous driving.

'You made a deliberate decision to ignore the rules of the road. Your driving was impaired by the consumption of alcohol and drugs.

'I do accept you show genuine remorse for what happened. The offending is so serious that only immediate custody is appropriate.'