A motorist who admitted that his dangerous driving caused a fatal road traffic collision in Wool has been jailed.
Stephen Sheppard, aged 41 and of Redhill Drive in Bournemouth, appeared at Bournemouth Crown Court to be sentenced on Monday 7 February 2022 after admitting an offence of causing death by dangerous driving.
He was sentenced to three years and four months in prison. Sheppard was also disqualified from driving for five years, with the ban due to start when he is released from prison.
The charge related to a three-vehicle collision on the A352 Wareham Road in Wool at around 5.35pm on Sunday 5 July 2020.
The defendant was driving a Hyundai Tucson, travelling in the direction of Wool, when it collided with a caravan being towed by a Land Rover that was heading in the opposite direction. The Hyundai then collided head on with a Ford Fiesta that had been travelling behind it.
Emergency services attended and a passenger in the Fiesta, 34-year-old Warren Wright from London, was very sadly pronounced dead at the scene. Four other people were taken to hospital for treatment to injuries.
Enquiries by officers revealed a number of witnesses who reported seeing Sheppard’s vehicle crossing the central white lines of the carriageway before colliding with the caravan.
Further enquiries revealed the defendant suffered from sleep apnoea but had not been regularly using a CPAP (continuous positive airway pressure) machine to assist with the condition.
Expert reports indicated that it was likely the defendant had fallen asleep at the wheel, which resulted in him failing to negotiate a bend and collide with the caravan before then colliding with the Fiesta.
Police Sergeant Mark Scammell, of the traffic unit, said: “Stephen Sheppard chose to drive when he was not using the CPAP machine that he was required to use to allow him to drive safely. As a result of his failure to use the machine in the weeks and days leading up to 5 July 2020, it is believed he fell asleep at the wheel with devastating consequences.
“Our thoughts remain with the family of Warren Wright at this time and I would like to thank them for their support throughout the investigation and court process.”
Also see a statement issued on behalf of the family of the victim, Warren Wright.
