Cwmbran man jailed after causing 60mph taxi crash
http://www.southwalesargus.co.uk/news/gwentnews/4248962.Cwmbran_man_jailed_after_causing_60mph_taxi_crash/
A CWMBRAN man was jailed after grabbing the steering wheel of a taxi travelling around 60mph, causing it to smash into a tree.
Michael Brown, 31, had been drinking heavily prior to the crash, described as "an extremely dangerous act" by the judge.
Brown pleaded guilty to criminal damage, being reckless as to whether human life was endangered, relating to the smash on September 13 last year.
He and a friend were drinking in Cwmbran's John Fielding pub after Brown, of Rhiw Melin, had drank a bottle of wine himself, Cardiff Crown Court was told.
The court heard the pair decided to go clubbing in Newport and ordered a taxi.
As they were travelling down Cwmbran Drive, Brown, who was sitting in the front passenger seat, pulled up the handbrake and yanked the steering wheel.
This caused the car to spin across the opposite side of the road, slamming into a tree and writing off the £10,000 taxi.
The driver was left with bruising to his face following the crash and required treatment in the Royal Gwent Hospital.
The court heard Brown climbed over the driver to escape, but handed himself into police two days later.
Defending, Stephen Thomas said Brown regretted his actions and had he realised the speed they were travelling, would not have done it.
Mr Thomas said Brown decided to pull the wheel because he no longer wanted to go to Newport and despite numerous requests, the driver didn't stop, leading him to take this "spontaneous and impulsive decision."
Sentencing Brown to eight months, Recorder of Cardiff Nicholas Cooke said: "This was an extremely dangerous act. It's only by the grace of God there wasn't a collision with an oncoming vehicle, or that your or others in the taxi lost their lives."
Brown was also disqualified from driving for 18 months.
PANEL - TAXI DRIVER David Sheppard, 38, of Greenmeadow, said: "He could have killed me easily. It will take me a very long time to get over it. I can’t believe that someone would go out of their way to be so cruel.
"He’s got to realise that you can’t go ripping people’s lives apart and have a laugh about it afterwards. I still avoid working nights because I don’t want to be in that situation again."
The father-of-five, a driver with Tiger Taxis for six years, said he had to buy a new car following the crash and it left him and his wife, who drove the taxi during the day, unemployed because they were without a working car and it cost him around £6,000 after insurance.
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