Death crash driver who lied to DVLA jailed

A driver who killed a man in a crash, having lied to the DVLA when told to give up his licence, has been jailed for more than six years.

David Devoy from Sunderland, who has epilepsy, had been urged not to drive less than a month before the fatal crash on the A7 at Stanwix Bank, Carlisle, on 2 May 2022.

Neil Errington, 50, died in the collision which also injured his partner and passenger, Sandra Mallinson, leaving her in "constant" physical and emotional pain.

Devoy, 54, admitted causing death by dangerous driving and two counts of fraud by false representation.

Carlisle Crown Court heard the former Sellafield worker had been warned not to drive after mounting a kerb and stopping very close to people at a bus stop in the city's West Tower Street.

Following that incident, on 5 April 2022, Devoy told a police officer he believed he had suffered an "absent seizure at the wheel" and was urged to voluntarily surrender his licence.

But the father-of-two told the DVLA the document had been lost and did not declare his epilepsy when trying to hire a car on 10 April.

On 2 May, Devoy collected a new BMW 320 from a Carlisle dealership and headed out on to Scotland Road.

The court heard he first crashed into a Fiat Punto and drove "ludicrously quickly", heading towards central Carlisle on the wrong side of the road.

He was travelling at between 76mph and 81mph in a 30mph zone when, during another medical episode, he ploughed into the back of Mr Errington's Mercedes which was waiting at traffic lights.

Devoy told a police officer he "must have had a funny do", the court heard.

Mr Errington, from the Carlisle area, was airlifted to Newcastle where he died 10 days later after life support was withdrawn.

His partner likened the crash to a "bomb going off".

In an impact statement read in court, Miss Mallinson described her life since as a "living hell".

She said: "I have lost who I was. But the most painful thing I have lost, which I can never get back, is Neil."

The couple had been together for 14 years and were renovating their home, she added.

"Our once happy home now stands empty with our dreams in tatters and we will never get to enjoy the life we had been dreaming of together."

Devoy, of Knightswood, Sunderland, wept in the dock as his offending was outlined.

Susan Hirst, mitigating, said: "He knows that there is nothing that can be said to make up for their loss. He also knows he is entirely responsible for their grief."

Judge Michael Fanning told him he should not have been on the road adding: "Look what you've done. Look what harm you've caused. Look what a life you've taken."

Devoy was sentenced to six years and eight months on Tuesday and was banned from driving for 10 years after his release.

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