Odame-Danquah [2019] EWCA Crim 689

The applicant pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 5 years imprisonment. He approached a left-hand bend on an unlit road, crossing the unbroken white lines for no apparent reason and entered the opposite carriageway crashing into an oncoming car, the driver of which later died.

The applicant left the scene and was arrested later in the day, a blood sample found Xanax, a prescription only drug that can cause impaired concentration and loss of co-ordination. No explanation was ever given for the presence of the drug and it is likely the concentration would have been higher at the time of driving.

In sentencing the offending was characterised as not far short of dangerous and the judge was not impressed by the suggestion that the incident could have been caused by a momentary dazzling caused by headlights. The guidelines suggested a starting point of 4 years, but the judge noted a previous driving conviction and took account of the behaviour following the incident, namely failing to stop and failing to co-operate with the police investigation. A starting point was taken of a little over 5 years and 6 months with a 10% discount for a late guilty plea leaving a sentence of 5 years.

The appeal criticised the starting point, that the driving wasn’t just short of dangerous and insufficient weight was given to the mitigation.

Held: there were a number of aggravating features present and little in terms of mitigation. It was simply not arguable that the judge fell into error with the starting point. The application was refused.