Businesswoman jailed for fatal head-on collision

A Norfolk businesswoman has been sentenced to two and a half years in prison for causing the death by dangerous driving of a teaching assistant.

Alicia Clarke, 49, from Diss, had pleaded guilty to causing the death of 45-year-old Michelle Overy in a crash on the A143 at nearby Thorpe Abbotts on the evening of 18 December 2020.

The Old Bailey in London heard that the mother-of-two, who lived in Wortham and worked at The Limes Primary Academy in Oulton Broad, Suffolk was killed in a head-on crash as the Mercedes car driven by Clarke was overtaking a lorry.

Clarke was also disqualified from driving for three years and three months and will have to take an extended driving test.

Barnaby Shaw, prosecuting, said Clarke had been self-medicating by taking anti-anxiety drugs that she had bought online rather than obtaining from her GP.

Medical experts had concluded the drugs would have affected her driving ability, he said.

A statement was read from a motorist, David Alexander, who had been driving behind Clarke and had noticed her driving erratically and described her vehicle as almost leaving the road and "weaving" from side to side.

He thought the driver ahead of him must have been drunk, on the telephone or asleep and had considered calling the police.

The Mercedes then overtook an HGV and crashed into the car travelling in the opposite direction, without breaking or making any attempt to return to the correct side of the road, the court heard.

James Leonard, defence counsel, said his client had been suffering from undiagnosed post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

Clarke had experienced a series of miscarriages and had shown "poor judgement" by seeking medication for her personal trauma that was not obtained through clinical channels, he said.

Mr Leonard said that on the day of the crash Clarke had the drug Pregabilin in her system and had taken a Xanax tablet that afternoon.

In a victim impact statement read to the court the victim's widower, Trevor Overy, said that the loss of his wife had taken a "huge emotional toll" on of their two teenage children and that life would not be the same without her.

Judge Anthony Bate said it was a "sad case".

The defendant, a director at Mrs Clarke's General Store in Harleston, had no previous convictions and a good driving record and had shown "profound, ongoing remorse," he said.

The judge added that there was also "compelling" expert evidence of PTSD that should be taken into account.

However, he had come to the conclusion that the offence was so serious only an immediate custodial sentence could be justified.

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