Leigh Brean, 43, has been jailed for three years and banned from driving for 11 years after crashing into a bus and a car travelling in the other direction, leaving one victim an amputee
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Police confront drink driver after injuring two people in collision
Police body cam footage shows the moment officers confronted a drunk driver moments after crashing into several victims, following a night out where he downed ten pints.
Leigh Brean had been driving a Volkswagen Tiguan with two passengers on the A38 near Bristol Airport where he overtook two bendy buses. The 43-year-old struck one of the buses before colliding with a Fiat 500 travelling in the opposite direction.
A female victim was placed in a coma for two months following the collision and sustained traumatic injuries to their arm, which had to be amputated at the elbow. She also sustained injuries to her leg and brain. The second victim suffered significant internal bleeding and bruising after the smash on October 28, 2023. In the video, Brean is seen slurring his words as he claimed not to have been the driver of the car and had “snapped his leg in half”.
Officers arrived at the scene and suspected Brean of drink driving, however he pleaded his innocence and insisted he was not the driver and refused to complete a roadside test. He later pleaded guilty to causing serious injury by dangerous driving and for failing to provide a specimen. He was jailed for three years and two months in prison, and was told he was not allowed to drive for 11 years and seven months.
The family of one of the victims, who asked not to be named, said: “The best part of this sentence was the length of the driving ban. We are aware of how many careless drivers there are on the road and the fact there is one less on the road is a very welcome prospect. We hope other judges in the future may make note of this aspect of Brean’s sentence.”
At the sentencing Judge Martin Picton said: “Your decision to drive when drunk has resulted in the infliction of unimaginable harm to (your victim). She was someone full of energy and enthusiasm for life and a successful businesswoman.
“She was physically very active both at work and at leisure. As a result of your actions, her life is now a shadow of that which it once was and she will never recover from the harm you caused when you chose to drive dangerously and when heavily intoxicated.
“Your remorse will provide no comfort to the female victim, her family or her partner who has also suffered harm as a result of being in the car at the time of the collision.”
Officer in the case, DC Victoria Anderson, said she hoped Brean’s conviction will ‘serve as a strong deterrent’ to anyone considering getting behind the wheel of a car when they are under the influence of drugs, alcohol or decide to drive in a dangerous or erratic manner.
She added: “This case has shown how the impact of one decision can have a life-long impact on all those involved. The victims and their families have shown incredible strength and resilience in the face of such adversity and their patience as they waited for justice to be served has been rewarded. They now have to live with the impact of one individual’s complete recklessness.”