A woman suffered horror injuries and had to learn to walk again after her boyfriend crashed his car off a bridge in Aberdeenshire.
Deklyn Davidson was asked by his partner and a friend to slow down as he approached a bend and bridge over the old Formartine and Buchan railway line on the B999 at the Tillyeve junction.
But the 19-year-old, who had only passed his test around a month earlier, was going so fast his Golf couldn’t take the corner and crashed off the bridge onto the path 25-30 feet below.
It then bounced onto a verge and came to rest on its side in a field.
Davidson and his friend escaped serious injury, but his girlfriend was left with a broken bone in her spine and required plastic surgery as well as physical therapy to be able to walk again due to her feet pointing inwards.
Fiscal depute Ruaridh McAlister told Aberdeen Sheriff Court the road, which has a 60mph limit, had warning signs telling drivers to slow down due to the bend.
Davidson claimed he ‘lost control due to swerving to avoid a deer’
The court heard that at 11.30pm on June 12 last year, Davidson received a text from a friend asking to be given a lift home.
He picked him up at midnight into June 13 and the friend sat in the front passenger seat while Davidson’s partner sat in the rear middle seat.
The three of them drove around for a period of time before heading towards Aberdeen on the B999.
On approach to Tillyeve, Davidson’s friend noticed he was driving “in excess of the speed limit”.
Mr McAlister said: “On approach to the junction, both witnesses told the accused to slow down.
“It quickly became clear to them he was carrying too much speed to get round the bend.
“On entering the bend, the accused turned the wheel full lock, however, the car continued in a straight line and left the road.
“It then fell off the bridge onto the old Formartine and Buchan railway line and bounced up a grass verge and landed in an adjacent field.”
‘Straight-lined the corner’
All three occupants were initially trapped in the car as it had landed on its side, but they eventually managed to escape.
A passing police car was flagged down at 1.20am by a member of the public who spotted the car in the field.
An ambulance was immediately called and, while Davidson and his friend appeared “in shock”, there were more serious concerns about his girlfriend’s condition.
Davidson told police he’d “lost control due to swerving to avoid a deer”.
Officers noted there were no marks on the road consistent with braking and concluded Davidson had “straight-lined” the corner.
Davidson’s girlfriend was taken to Aberdeen Royal Infirmary and found to have a broken rib and fractured spinal bone as well as lacerations to her forehead, ear and under her eye.
She required plastic surgery to repair the facial injuries.
‘She had to train herself to walk again’
It was also discovered she had a broken nose and cheekbone, the latter causing complications with fluid building up in her cheek.
Mr McAlister said: “She also had to train herself to walk again as both of her feet were turned inwards.
“This required physical therapy and she still has some difficulty walking.”
The crash and injuries had a “significant psychological impact” on the woman, who now suffers from PTSD and has issues with loud noises and being in cars.
Davidson, of Tuach View, Kintore, pled guilty to causing serious injury by dangerous driving.
Defence agent George Mathers said: “He’s never been in trouble before. He only just passed his test about a month before this incident happened.
“Unfortunately, the relationship they had been in ended not long after this incident.”
Sheriff Morag McLaughlin deferred sentence on Davidson for reports and banned him from driving in the interim period.
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