A drink driving mechanic killed his close friend by taking a corner too fast in his high-powered car and smashing into a wall.
Show-off Christopher Brown caused the death of childhood pal Callum Gray by losing control of his modified Subaru Impreza after downing lager. Much-loved Callum, 28, initially walked away from the scene but collapsed half a mile from the crash sites in Ryton, Gateshead. He died eleven days later from neck and chest injuries.
Newcastle Crown Court heard the family of "gentle giant" Callum, an oil and gas specialist who had travelled around the world for work, have been left devastated by his loss. Brown, 29, of Castle Lea, Prudhoe, Gateshead, pleaded guilty to causing death by careless driving while over the drink drive limit and has now been jailed for 40 months.
As he was sentenced, Callum's mum, Karen Gray, said in a victim impact statement read to the court: "Not having him in our lives is absolutely devastating. Our hearts have not been broken, they have been shattered.
"The gap in our hearts is like the Grand Canyon. He was, without doubt, the glue that held our family together. Without him we are shells of our former selves."
Mrs Gray, who said she stands in front of a picture of her "precious" son and tells him how much she loves him, said life is now "just one massive mountain". She added that he was about to propose to his girlfriend.
Dad, Gary, added: "He was the best son son anyone could ask for. The grief doesn't get better it only gets deeper and the loss is overwhelming. The impact has crushed me into someone I don't know."
Callum's partner, Ellen Henderson, added that she's "at a complete loss without him" and his brother, Stuart, labelled Brown "remorseless and reckless" and said "it was only a matter of time before someone was hurt due to his reckless driving".
The court heard Callum had been having a few drinks with friends in Ryton on August 7 2020. As they walked to the Half Moon pub, Brown pulled up and gave one of them a lift and people commented on the "ridiculous speed" he was doing.
Brown was seen drinking what appeared to be pints of lager, having ignored someone's advice to leave his car behind, the court heard. He had been drinking a mixture of lager and coke and didn't appear to be drunk when they left the pub.
Callum got in the front passenger seat and another man got in the back. The other man said Brown was driving at high speed for the 30mph area and that it was "a little dangerous".
Ian West, prosecuting, said: "As the defendant tried to make a turn, the car spun out of control and hit a brick wall and the near side ended up embedded in a wall at 90 degree angle to the road." He added: "He seems to have been showing off his high powered modified vehicle."
When someone came upon the scene, a turn into Woodside Lane off the B6317, which runs through the village, Callum was screaming to be let out and when the door was opened he "practically fell out". He walked from the scene with Brown but was found 20 minutes later lying on the ground half a mile away, complaining he couldn't breath, that his neck was hurting and that he couldn't move.
Several calls were made to the emergency services, including by Brown after he left the scene, but an ambulance didn't arrive for nearly three hours. When Brown was breathalysed 90 minutes after the crash he was found to have 57 micrograms of alcohol in 100ml of breath, the legal limit being 35 micrograms. A collision investigation found he was doing between 36.8 and 42.1mph as he approached the turn.
Callum was taken to the RVI and found to have a depressed fracture of his sternum, rib fractures, fractured vertebrae and blood in his chest cavity. A post mortem found the cause of death was neck and chest injuries.
As well as the prison sentence, dad-of-two Brown, who has no previous convictions, will be banned from driving for three years after he is released. Judge Robert Adams said: "Nothing I do will make things better, nothing I do will bring him back.
"This action has destroyed the lives of the Gray family and also the family of the defendant and his own life as well." He told Brown: "You appeared to show off when driving the car. That's clearly the case that evening from people who witnessed your driving earlier on.
"This has been a terrible tragedy for everyone and you will have to live with the fact your actions killed a long-standing friend."
Chris Knox, defending, denied that Brown had abandoned Callum and said he is a "decent family man" with a partner and good job and didn't realise Callum was badly injured at the time. He added that he feels grief, sorrow and regret about the loss of his friend.
