Shocking dashcam footage captures moment drink driver ploughs into oncoming car

21/12/2023

Shocking footage has been released which shows a drink driver crashing head-on into another car on a Welsh bridge. The “horrific” crash happened at Llandudno Junction on November 12 when restaurant manager Antoine Mercier veered into the car of Jennifer Young, who was driving on the road between Conwy and Bangor in the opposite direction. Mercier, 44, of Denbigh Street, Llanrwst, had drank “two or three pints” as well as vodka which had left him three times above the legal driving limit.

Mercier told officers after the collision that he had earlier had a row with a colleague at work and that he was “stressed” as a result. A clip of the crash has been released by the Crown Prosecution Service after it was captured by a dashcam camera from another vehicle that was travelling on Conwy Bridge. You can get the latest WalesOnline newsletters e-mailed to you directly for free by signing up here [1].

Ms Young was taken to hospital with a fractured spine, severe pain in her nose and abdominal pain. A passenger in her car was also taken to hospital with whiplash and bruising. According to North Wales Live [2], Mercier was found to have consumed 246 milligrams of alcohol in 100 millilitres of blood – the legal limit being 80 milligrams. He was prosecuted for drink driving alone and has completed his punishment of 130 hours of unpaid work, but he was later charged with the more serious offence of causing serious injury by dangerous driving.

Last Thursday at Caernarfon Crown Court, Mercier was handed an 18-month jail term, suspended for 18 months, after admitting the dangerous driving offence. He was also ordered to carry out 250 hours of unpaid work and 20 days of rehabilitation activity, and told he must wear an electronic alcohol abstinence monitoring tag for 120 days. He has been disqualified from driving for two and a half years and told he must pass an extended retest before he can drive again.

The judge – His Honour Timothy Petts – told the court that Mercier’s actions had had a physical and psychological impact on the other driver, but a report suggested he is at low risk of re-offending.

References

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^ According to North Wales Live (www.dailypost.co.uk)