Jailed: Lorry driver on mobile phone who caused crash which seriously injured baby

Nell Owen was seen throwing a mobile phone into a field after causing the smash on a major route through Mid Wales.

The 25-year-old had been driving a cattle truck and did not see a car waiting to turn right on the A470 at Caersws, near Newtown, until it was too late.

The Volvo animal transporter hit the car from behind injuring the female driver and her two children, including a seven month old baby.

Mold Crown Court heard yesterday how the car was then forced into an on-coming Ford Transit van which became embedded into it.

The two children were airlifted to Birmingham Children's Hospital where the baby was found to have bruising on the brain and was kept in hospital for six days.

An investigation following the accident, which happened close to the Caersws level crossing on November 4 last year, showed she had been using two mobile phones during her journey, her own and that of her employers, and was on the phone at the time of the impact.

She had also been travelling too fast during the journey and had been earlier cutting corners against centre white lines.

Owen, of Radcliffe Road, Criccieth, North Wales, admitted dangerous driving.

In addition to the 10 month jail sentence, Owen was banned from driving for three years and was ordered to pass an extended driving test before she drives again.

Judge Niclas Parry told her that on that she was a tragedy waiting to happen.

"For many miles you drove with absolute disregard for the rules of the road," he told her.

She was a professional driver, driving what another motorist had called "a huge, long vehicle."

It was a HGV being driven to transport a large number of cattle with a maximum speed of 40 mph – but she had on 12 occasions during her journey reached 56 mph – the maximum speed under its regulator.

Other motorists driving behind for half an hour had witnessed her erratic driving swerving across the centre white lines and solid centre markings many times.

"Such was your lack of control, drivers of vehicles behind you considered it unsafe to overtake you for fear of being knocked off the road," the judge told her.

The defendant was distracted by the two mobile phones she had been using.

She had been seen holding one phone to her ear with one hand on the steering wheel.

The defendant had also been seen to look down at the other phone in its hands-free cradle.

An investigation showed that during a journey of an hour and three-quarters, she received three calls and made 16 calls on one phone, and she had made six out-going calls on the other phone and a text.

Then she struck a vehicle ahead of her which was waiting to turn right.

"You struck it at full speed without braking until the last second, because you were not looking. You had not seen that car," the judge declared.

That car was shunted across the road into the path of an on-coming vehicle.

Four people including children were injured but the judge warned her: "it could have been much worse."

The judge said that he was utterly satisfied that he would be failing in his public duty if he did not impose an immediate prison sentence.

David Mainstone, prosecuting, told how Tami Swayne was making a short journey to her in-laws when the crash happened.

After the impact, she turned to see her daughter bleeding from the face and her baby boy flopping in his baby seat.

Both children were airlifted to hospital. The baby had bruising to the brain and had been detained for six days. He had then started improving day by day.

Mrs Swayne had extensive cuts and bruises together with whiplash and her daughter also had cuts and bruising.

Terence Dyche, the driver of the on-coming vehicle, had chest and leg injuries.

Owen in interview falsely claimed that she had stopped using her mobile phone 10 minutes before the collision.

Mr Philip Clemo, defending, said that his client was distraught and genuinely shocked at what had happened.