Devon driver jailed after paralysing teenager
The 22 year-old admitted driving dangerously in Bere Alston
Last updated 1st Dec 2022
A man from Bere Alston has been jailed for two-and-a-half years, after pleading guilty to dangerous driving after a collision which left a teenager paralysed.
Harry Brockington, 22, lost control of the car he was driving having been taking drugs and drinking alcohol.
He was sentenced to 30 months at Plymouth Crown Court, having pleaded guilty to a number of motoring offences at an earlier hearing at Plymouth Magistrates’ Court.
Seth Marks, 18, was a rear seat passenger in the Audi A3, which was being driven by Brockington in the early hours of Friday 6 May, when the driver lost control on a bend and collided with a bank and wooden garden fence on The Down, Bere Alston.
As a result of the collision, Mr Marks sustained life-changing injuries, which mean he will be a quadriplegic for the rest of his life, and he remains in hospital.
Brockington pleaded guilty to charges of causing serious injury by dangerous driving, driving with a proportion of a controlled drug, Delta-9 tetrahydrocannabinol, also known as THC, which is a derivative of cannabis, above the specified limit and driving when the alcohol level was above the legal limit. He was found to have 81 milligrams of alcohol in 100 millilitres of blood, when the legal limit is 80mg.
He also admitted driving other than in accordance with his driver’s licence, driving without insurance, and driving a vehicle with defective tyres on the vehicle.
Sergeant Sam Pullen, from the Serious Collisions Investigation Team, said: “This collision has caused life-changing injuries to Seth Marks, who is 18 years old and was the rear seat passenger.
“As a result, he will remain as a quadriplegic for the rest of his life.
“This has had a devastating effect on a young man, as well as his family and friends, and highlights the dangers of driving while unfit through drink or drugs.
“Alcohol and drugs impair many of the functions necessary for safe driving; reaction times and spatial awareness are affected significantly.
“It’s not just the driver at risk. They could kill or seriously injure another person. Drink driving destroys people’s lives and those of their families.”