Inverness woman gets three years imprisonment for Merkinch crash

A drink-driving mother-of-five who badly injured three men after she crashed her car into a bookmaker's premises has been jailed for three years.

Donna Stewart ignored pleas to slow down by the men, who were her passengers, before she drove her Mercedes into the building in Grant Street, Inverness.

Today Judge Graham Buchanan told Stewart (46) at the High Court in Edinburgh: "Your actions on the night in question were totally irresponsible and resulted in devastating consequences for each of your three victims.

"You were driving whilst intoxicated through alcohol, to some extent at least, and it is plain your speed was grossly excessive."

He continued: "Your passengers were alarmed by what you were doing and asked you to slow down, but you ignored their pleas.

"It is clear that in the circumstances only a sentence of imprisonment is appropriate.

"In this particular case I have concluded that your level of culpability is high and so is the level of harm you caused.

"Three people suffered severe injuries as a result of what you did and this is an aggravating feature of the case."

Stewart was originally charged with attempting to murder her partner Hugh Lowther and two other passengers, Stephen MacDonald and John Fraser, following the crash on January 21, 2021.

She denied the murder bid charges but during an earlier trial the Crown accepted her guilty pleas to the dangerous driving offences.

She admitted to causing serious injury to the men by driving dangerously while intoxicated in streets in Inverness. She drove at excessive speed, failed to negotiate a junction and mounted a pavement before hitting the building in Grant Street.

The court heard that Stewart, who was living at Glenurquhart Road, in Inverness, at the time, and her long term partner Mr Lowther had visited a woman at her home.

Stewart discovered that not only had he been unfaithful but also that he had gone back on a promise to end his involvement with drugs.

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Prosecutor John Macpherson said that appeared to have been "the catalyst" for Stewart to start drinking heavily and becoming increasingly upset. She was drinking wine and the caffeinated alcoholic drink Dragon Soop.

The couple drove to a friend's home where they were heard arguing and Stewart insisted on driving the Mercedes C220 with the men as passengers after they left.

During the journey one of the men said that at one point the car's speedometer registered 80mph and they were all shouting at her to slow down.

CCTV footage showed the car emerge at high speed from Lower Kessock Street, where it crossed Grant Street and forcefully collided with the wall of the bookmakers.

Members of the public helped remove Mr MacDonald and Mr Fraser from the vehicle. Stewart and Mr Lowther were cut out from the car by firefighters.

All four were taken to Raigmore Hospital by ambulance. Mr Lowther suffered leg, spine and breastbone fractures and underwent surgery.

Mr MacDonald also underwent surgery after sustaining broken bones in his right thigh and ankle. Mr Fraser underwent operations following a hip injury.

The injuries sustained by the men in the crash were categorised as severe and life-threatening.

Defence counsel Janice Green said Stewart has expressed "genuine remorse" for the offending.

She said that Stewart accepted that her judgement was impaired after drinking and added: "She accepts her abuse of alcohol in response to this distress does not assist her case."

Miss Green said: "It is also accepted that the three complainers suffered severe injuries, some life changing injuries."

The judge pointed out that the maximum sentence for the offence of causing serious injury by dangerous driving is five years imprisonment.

Stewart, of McCallum Court, Perth, was also banned from driving for six years and told that she would have to pass an extended test before she could regain a full driving licence.