Drunk driver caught on camera barely able to stand - before getting into van and crashing into car, injuring two
Shocking footage has been released of a man so drunk he could barely stand - before getting into his van and injuring two people in a car crash.
A drunk driver was caught on camera barely able to stand in a pub garden - before he drove away in his van and crashed into a car. ‘Heavily intoxicated’ Lawson Wright can be seen stumbling around and falling over a potted tree in the CCTV footage.
Thames Valley Police released the video of the 56-year-old, of Headington in Oxfordshire, staggering away from the bar after being turned away. They said the incident, which occurred on April 20 last year, saw Lawson get 'turned away' from the pub garden, and then attempt to drive his Ford Transit van.
Lawson then collided with another vehicle on the A44 in Yarnton, with the driver and passenger of the vehicle miraculously sustaining only minor injuries. Body-cam footage, taken by officers at the scene of the crash, reveals the extensive damage to Lawson's van and the other vehicle as well as the substantial emergency response team present at the scene.
Lawson pleaded guilty to driving without insurance, dangerous driving, possession of a class C controlled drug, namely Diazepam, and failure to provide a specimen for analysis. He was sentenced to 18 months imprisonment, suspended for 20 months, at Oxford Crown Court on Wednesday (February 11).
He was also disqualified from driving for five years, must complete an extended re-test, and has been ordered to pay compensation of £2,000 to the victims. Lawson was also given a nine-month curfew, which requires him to stay at his home address between 7pm and 5am every day.
A statement from Thames Valley Police, released with the video, said: "We say it time and time again: please do not drink and drive. It’s not just your life you put at risk, it's everyone else’s too."