Driver who was under the influence of alcohol and drugs when he crashed and killed a passenger is sentenced to 16 years in prison – The Irish Times

A Co Down driver who was under the influence of a cocktail of alcohol and drugs when he crashed his BMW, throwing the back seat passenger from the car and fatally injuring him, was sentenced to a total of 16 years in prison on Monday.

Judge Geoffrey Miller KC sentenced Steven Cunningham to nine and a half years' imprisonment for causing the death of Charlotte McHugh by careless driving while impaired, and imposed a six and a half year sentence for perverting the course of justice because the 28-year-old had attempted to cover up his involvement.

The judge at Downpatrick Crown Court ordered that the sentences be served consecutively, half in prison and half suspended, telling Cunningham that he had been “the driving force in the recovery of her body from the scene of the fatal road traffic accident and as a result had delayed calls to the emergency services”.

“There is no doubt that his primary motive was his determination to distance himself from the accident and be identified as the cause of death,” Judge Miller said.

He explained to Cunningham that as a licensed driver he had “no right” to drive that night, but that by doing so and by being under the influence of alcohol and drugs he had demonstrated “arrogance and a lack of regard for the sanctions of this court.”

On the day of his court hearing last June, Cunningham, whose address is subject to a reporting restriction due to death threats, admitted causing the death of 27-year-old Charlotte by driving carelessly and while impaired by alcohol or drugs on Comber Road in Dundonald on June 1, 2021.

He also pleaded guilty to dangerous driving on the Old Dundonald Road, driving while disqualified, possession of Class C drugs (pregabalin and diazepam), driving without insurance and perverting the course of justice by “being involved in the removal of Charlotte McHugh from the scene of a road traffic accident on Comber Road, Dundonald”.

In jailing Cunningham, Judge Miller said that while Cunningham had expressed remorse in pleading guilty, those feelings were “little consolation” to Charlotte's mother, Amanda Flood, who said her victim impact statement was a “heartfelt and powerful account” of the devastating impact the tragic death of her only daughter had had on her.

In addition to his prison sentence, Cunningham was also banned from driving for ten years, which will begin upon his release from prison.