A Peel student has been convicted of dangerous driving after crashing into a wall on the Mountain Road.
Nicholas Adam O’Dell, of Creggans Avenue, pleaded guilty to the charge in court and will be sentenced on July 4.
Prosecutor Barry Swain told the court how, on January 8 at 12.30pm, O’Dell, who is 18, offered a lift to two fellow students at the Isle of Man College.
The students got into O’Dell’s Ford Fiesta with him, with one sitting in the front passenger seat and the other in the back.
O’Dell drove the pair to Ramsey as one had forgotten some course work.
However, on the way back from Ramsey O’Dell was said by his passengers to have driven a lot quicker.
The two students told police that numerous times they told O’Dell to slow down.
The court heard that, at one stage, O’Dell overtook a bus and a taxi and was on the wrong side of the road approaching a corner.
Both passengers said that they were scared by O’Dell’s driving.
They estimated that he approached the Creg-ny-Baa at approximately 95mph and had said that he ‘wanted to see how quick he could go’.
O’Dell’s passengers told police that they continued shouting at him to slow down.
The Ford Fiesta eventually collided with a wall on the left hand side of the road and came to rest with two tyres up in the air, suffering extensive front impact damage.
One student was said to have suffered bruising to their chest, legs and waist, and a chipped tooth.
The second student snapped tendons in their neck, spent five nights in hospital and had to wear a head support for several months after the accident.
Mr Swain told the court that, while the accident had been serious, it didn’t quite fall into the causing serious bodily harm category.
In police interview O’Dell said that he had approached the Creg-ny-Baa at 30mph, the brakes had locked up and when he had reapplied them he had lost control of the car. He also claimed that he had only overtaken a van at Windy Corner and nothing else prior to the collision.
Mr Swain said that neither of these statements were accepted by the prosecution.
Another witness, who was also driving on the Mountain Road at the time, told police that he did not think O’Dell was driving like an idiot but said that he was straying over the white lines in the centre of the road. That witness also told police: ‘I was not surprised to see the vehicle up the wall because of his manner of driving.’ They estimated that O’Dell was driving at 50 to 60mph when he overtook him.
Defending O’Dell in court, advocate Peter Russell said: ‘It does appear the road was slightly damp but it can’t be disputed Mr O’Dell was travelling too quickly, and that’s why he crashed.’
Mr Russell asked for an adjournment to allow time for the preparation of probation reports.
Deputy High Bailiff Jayne Hughes agreed to the adjournment saying that the report should leave all options open, including custody.
Mrs Hughes accepted juridiction of the case, ruling that her summary court powers would be sufficient for sentencing.
Bail was granted in the sum of £500 with conditions that O’Dell resides at his home address, attends probation meetings and does not leave the island.