A drink driver has been jailed after downing beer and killing a pensioner on holiday.
Martin Jolly, 27, shared a 12-pack of beer with a pal on the beach before getting behind the wheel of his Vauxhall Astra and tearing down a 60mph road at speeds of up to 90mph. He then lost control at a bend and crashed "like an arrow" into another Astra, injuring the driver Ramsay McCallum, 83, and killing his wife Helen, 82, a passenger. The tragic crash took place on the A710 near Barnbarroch in Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland, in May 2019.
Jolly was sentenced to 10 years and eight months behind bars at the High Court in Glasgow on Tuesday, the Daily Record reported. He had got his driving licence back just three months before the crash after being banned from the road for 14 months. He also had four previous convictions for careless driving.
Martin Jolly, 27, shared a 12-pack of beer with a pal on the beach before getting behind the wheel of his Vauxhall Astra
Jolly crashed into another car killing passenger Helen, pictured (UGC)On the day of the crash, Jolly had picked up a friend and stopped off to buy a 12-pack of Corona beer before heading to Sandyhills Beach in Dumfries and Galloway. Prosecutor Chris Macintosh said: "During the journey, he was driving at speeds between 80 to 90mph on roads with a 60mph limit. He was repeatedly looking at his passenger and reminded by her to keep his eyes on the road."
The court heard they spent 90 minutes at the beach both drinking the beer. Tragedy then struck on the journey back home when he collided with the McCallums. The elderly couple, from Kilmarnock, Ayrshire, were driving to their daughter’s home in the village of Kippford in Kirkcudbrightshire where they were on holiday.
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Jolly was travelling in the opposite direction and his passenger was said to be "very uncomfortable" at his driving speed. He went on to smack into a verge before losing control at a bend and eventually colliding with the couple’s car. Mr Macintosh said: "Mr McCallum described the oncoming vehicle as shooting across the road onto his side ‘like an arrow’.”
One witness believed the smash was so bad that everyone involved would be dead. A 999 call was made and despite attempts to save Mrs McCallum, she did not survive having suffered fatal chest and abdominal injuries. Her husband had a wound to his arm wound while Jolly’s passenger had multiple fractures to her hand and wrist. Jolly, of Newton Stewart, Dumfries and Galloway, also needed hospital treatment.
Police searched Jolly's car and discovered four bottles of Corona beer still there. Tests revealed he had no less than 68mg per 100ml of alcohol in his blood. The legal limit is 50mg. He also had traces of the drug diazepam in his system. In August, Jolly pleaded guilty to a charge of causing death and serious injury by dangerous driving. He was jailed for almost 11 years and banned from driving for 14 and a half years.
Lord Clark told Jolly: "The information before me includes victim impact statements from Mr McCallum and other family members. What they have said in their dignified and harrowing personal accounts explains the acutely distressing effect on the family. Helen McCallum was described as the lynchpin of a large and loving family. Her death from your totally unacceptable behaviour has caused irreparable damage and has had a devastating effect."
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