Crash father is jailed for death of son's pal

Martin Pugh, 45, was speeding in a Rover 45 packed with four passengers and running on "grossly" deflated rear tyres when tragedy struck, Wolverhampton Crown Court heard. The crane operator lost control while overtaking a parked van in Mill Lane, Wednesfield, explained prosecutor Mrs Sati Ruck.

The car careered off the road, hit a lamp post and ploughed into a garden wall before spinning to a standstill straddling the pavement facing on coming traffic.

Rear seat passenger Chris Bains suffered fatal head injuries and had a cardiac arrest at the scene, the court was told.

The 18-year-old victim was among three close friends of Pugh's son Dale who decided to "go along for the ride" when the younger man was offered a lift by his father, continued Mrs Ruck.

Front seat passenger Dale broke eight ribs while both the other surviving passengers were hurt.

Mr Bains was probably not wearing a seat belt when the accident occured around 1.30pm on Sunday January 29, the court heard.

Pugh later admitted that he was travelling up to 10 mph above the 30 mph speed limit on a damp road and added: "As I started to turn in after overtaking the parked van I felt the rear of my vehicle begin to slide and panicked."

Mr Jon Roe, defending said Pugh had been "devastated " by the consequences of the crash and the death of a young man whom he had known well.

Pugh from Masefield Road, The Scotlands, pleaded guilty to causing death by careless driving and was jailed by Judge Martin Walsh who also banned him from driving for four years. He said: "You were going too fast for the prevailing road conditions with two rear tyres that were grossly deflated."