5:02pm Thursday 2nd September 2010
By Andy Carswell
DRIVERS today told a court of the moment a teenager crashed after swerving to avoid the “dangerous” driving of another motorist.
Greg Stiles was killed instantly when he crashed his car into the side of another vehicle on the A4129 between Princes Risborough and Thame on May 17 last year.
The 18-year-old Thame resident's car “shot up in the air” after the collision, which also seriously injured his girlfriend, Abi Dowdy of Prestwood.
But the crash was caused by Mr Stiles trying to get out the way of a blue BMW X5 being driven by Sammy Edwards, Reading Crown Court heard.
Edwards, 26, of Marsh, near Aylesbury, overtook a line of three cars at speeds of up to 80mph, the court heard.
But jurors were told after initially pulling in once he had overtaken the first two cars Edwards “unexpectedly” pulled out again to get past the third vehicle before “swerving violently” back into the right carriageway.
Michael Spraggon, who was in the first car overtaken by Edwards, said he and the other vehicles were travelling at around 50 or 55mph and there was a gap of around 40 metres between each car. He was following a Vauxhall Corsa being driven by his partner, Debbie Tank.
He described the vehicle which overtook him was a blue BMW X5, which had a metallic tint to it. He said it made no attempt to pull in in front of him.
Mr Spraggon said he was aware of another car approaching in the opposite direction.
He told the court: “The oncoming car was becoming, in my view, uncomfortably close to us. I was relieved to see the overtaking vehicle begin to move in front of my girlfriend's car.”
But he said: “To my amazement it pulled back out again into the opposite lane.
“The overtaking car swerved violently back into its own lane. The next thing I saw was the oncoming car hit the verge. It was obvious to me he had swerved to avoid a head-on collision with the overtaking car.”
Mr Spraggon said: “It veered across the road towards the front of my girlfriend's car. The other lane was becoming free so I swerved into the opposite lane to avoid the two vehicles.
“It was going sideways and hit the front of my girlfriend's car square on.”
Mr Stiles' car “shot up in the air”, he said.
“I just heard a bang,” he said. “It was a fairly dull sound but obviously fairly loud.”
Mr Spraggon was asked to guess the speed of the oncoming car: “He didn't appear to be speeding. It seemed to be a constant speed similar to what we were doing.”
His partner, Debbie Tank, who was in the car in front, said: “I was aware the 4x4 overtook the car behind me. I wondered what he was trying to achieve: there were three of us travelling along the road. I thought he would come in between me and the car behind me, which he didn't.”
She said Edwards slowed as he pulled in ahead of her, as he had been travelling in the region of 80mph to overtake her. She was not forced to slow down herself however.
Miss Tank described Edwards as pulling “half in”.
She said she couldn't see anything in the other carriageway after Edwards pulled in but she was “semi aware” there was another car going in the opposite direction.
But she said: “He then suddenly sped off again and decided to overtake the third vehicle. I remember feeling a bit concerned and a little scared because I didn't know what was coming.
“As soon as he was out of my way I remember seeing this other car swerving straight towards me from across the other side of the road. It happened very quickly. I didn't have time to do anything.
“There was just a big impact. I remember seeing the car flying off of my car. It flew up into the air.”
She added: “I didn't know if the car behind me had gone into the back of me because the impact was so violent.”
Neither motorist was able to say who was driving the BMW or how many people were in the car at the time of the collision.
Edwards denies causing death by dangerous driving. The trial continues.
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