A motorist who killed his friend after speeding at 76mph through a built-up residential area has been jailed for seven years and four months. David Barker, 27, crashed his Skoda Octavia on Wolstanton High Street in Staffordshire, causing his rear seat passenger Steven Field, 40, to be thrown through an open sun roof. Mr Field sustained a severe skull fracture and traumatic brain injury and was pronounced dead at the scene.
Prosecutor Rupert Jones told Stoke-on-Trent Crown Court that the fatal crash occurred in the early hours of June 15. Barker had been out with Mr Field and another man the previous evening. CCTV showed Barker driving at excessive speed before losing control, hitting a lamppost, and rolling the car. He fled the scene but handed himself in three hours later. A breath test five hours after the incident gave a reading of 17 milligrams of alcohol per 100 millilitres of blood, well below the legal limit of 80.
Barker, of Horton Drive, Weston Coyney, pleaded guilty to causing death by dangerous driving. In mitigation, Nick Tatlow said Barker had no previous convictions and his remorse was genuine. Mr Tatlow explained that Barker had considered taking his own life after the crash but instead went to the police station to face the consequences. Judge Graeme Smith described the events as a 'tragedy', noting that Barker was driving at 76mph in a 30mph limit and swerved to avoid a car pulling out from a side road. Barker must serve two-thirds of his sentence.
