A driver who killed a grandfather in a high-speed crash while driving a car he knew had faulty brakes has been jailed for seven years and six months.
James Waddell, 21, was driving a Subaru Forester at more than 70mph on the A690 in Sunderland when he collided with a VW Tiguan driven by Paul Andrew Fulcher, known as Andrew. Newcastle Crown Court heard that Andrew, 53, had stopped at a junction after seeing the speed of the approaching Subaru.
Crash details and victim's death
Waddell had overtaken another car and reached 72mph on the 30mph road before hitting Andrew's vehicle. Andrew was taken to hospital and placed on a ventilator after the collision on April 14, 2025. He died on April 25 last year after fighting for his life for 11 days.
Prosecutor Emma Dowling told the court that the Subaru, which Waddell had bought from Facebook days earlier, had defective brakes. Waddell initially denied knowing the brakes were faulty but later admitted he had been switching from automatic to manual to use the gears to brake instead of applying the brakes themselves. Ms Dowling said it would have been obvious to the driver that the brakes were faulty.
Victim impact statements
Ms Dowling said Andrew, who was returning from a medical appointment at Sunderland Royal Hospital, must have frozen when he saw the defendant approaching at such speed. She said: "The defendant would not have been able to avoid the collision because of the speed he was driving at. The brakes on the Subaru car he was driving were very defective. Three of the four brakes were metal on metal."
The court heard that Waddell posted on social media about his ability to walk out of the crash on the day it happened, while Andrew was in hospital with serious injuries. In a victim impact statement, Andrew's wife Tracey described how he helped care for their disabled grandson and supported her through her own mental health difficulties. She told Waddell he was driving like he was "on a racecourse" and crashed into her husband so badly that he never stood a chance of coming home. She said: "Our family have been given a life sentence of pain and sorrow."
One of Andrew's daughters said: "My dad's death was horrible and traumatising. Nothing could ever prepare you to see something so violent." She described her father as a "real man" and called Waddell an "arrogant 21-year-old boy" and a "killer". Andrew's mother said: "I miss my son Andrew so much. My heart aches everyday for him."
Sentencing and disqualification
Waddell, of King Edward Road, Sunderland, pleaded guilty to death by dangerous driving. His defence barrister, Harriett Snookes, told the court he was "traumatised" by what had happened. She said: "Mr Waddell's decision to get in the car that day is something he will have to contemplate for the rest of his life. I asked him earlier what it is he wanted me to say on his behalf and he simply said 'I'm very, very sorry'."
She asked Judge Tim Gittins to consider that Waddell was 19 at the time of the crash. She said: "He accepts the speed that he reached on that day. He accepts that when he attempted to put his foot on the brake nothing happened and he does now accept that the vehicle was faulty."
Judge Gittins said Andrew was a 53-year-old husband, father and grandfather who was "the heart and soul of a close family" and "much loved and well respected by hundreds". He told Waddell his "selfish and arrogant" decision to "drive like a maniac" had cost a man his life, adding: "You have left a painful void in the family's lives that clearly can't be filled." The judge said Andrew would have completed his manoeuvre safely had Waddell been near the speed limit, and described the brakes as being in a "deplorable state".
Waddell was jailed for seven years and six months, disqualified from driving for 11 years, and ordered to take an extended driving test before returning to the road.
