Four young drivers jailed for causing death of friend in crash

Denii Reynolds, 20, from Grimsby died following a crash on the A16 at Utterby, near Louth, in October 2021.

Ms Reynolds was a passenger in a 2008 Citroen C1, driven by her close friend Keelan Tuke, when it was in collision with a Vauxhall Corsa, seriously injuring the elderly occupant, Margaret Williams, 79.

Four men were convicted in October of causing Ms Reynolds death by dangerous driving and causing serious injury to Mrs Williams after a trial at Lincoln Crown Court.

Tuke, 21, of Grafton Street, Grimsby, Keigan Launder, 23, of Louth Road, Grimsby, and Josh Dobb, 21, of Hadleigh Road, Immingham, were each jailed for eight and half years and banned from driving for nine years and three months.

Telecommunications engineer, Riley Duncombe, 19, of Thesiger Walk, Grimsby, was sentenced to five years and eight months in a young offenders institution and banned from driving for seven years and ten months.

All four men will also have to take an extended driving test before they can get behind the wheel

Passing sentence Judge James House KC said: "What happened on the night of October 26, 2021 was a tragedy. It resulted in the death of a young lady, Denii Reynolds."

"I appreciate to Denii Reynolds loved ones no sentence I can pass is adequate," Judge House admitted, adding that the events of the night were sadly "all too familiar."

"A group of young people, very often young men, meet up and go driving together," Judge House explained.

Judge House said it was clear from evidence heard in the trial that they were "showing off" and driving "far too fast".

"I am sure what they were doing is egging each other on," Judge House concluded.

"Denii Reynolds had her whole life in front of her. The impact on her family is incalculable," Judge House stressed.

"As has been said, no parent should have to bury their child."

Judge House also added: "The impact on Margaret Williams has been profound."

Margaret Williams sat in the public gallery to watch the four drivers jailed, along with members of Ms Reynolds' family.

Mrs Williams victim impact statement was read out in court by her son. In it Mrs Williams explained that until the night of the collision she was a normal, sprightly 79-year-old who was returning home after playing bridge.

"The accident has ruined my life, and the road to recovery has been painful and difficult," Mrs Williams explained.

"Even to sit is painful," Mrs Williams added. "It will not get any better."

Mrs Williams said she attended the trial to look the defendants' in the eyes but became too upset to watch the conclusion.

"Having listened to some of their accounts I feel the truth was being twisted," Mrs Williams explained.

Victim impact statements were also read out from members of Ms Reynolds' family who also described their disappointment at having to sit through a trial.

Denii's mother said it felt like the defendants had failed to take full responsibility or to finally show Denii some respect as her "so-called friends."

The jury heard Tuke was in the lead vehicle driving the Citroen, while Dobb was in a Ford Fiesta van, Duncombe was driving a Ford Fiesta, and Launder was at the wheel of a Mercedes A180.

During the trial prosecution barrister Jeremy Janes said Mrs Williams was driving south along the A16 "perfectly properly" when without warning she was struck head-on by the Citroen being driven by Tuke.

Mrs Williams was taken to Hull Royal Infirmary with life threatening injuries including a smashed right foot, a broken right leg and a broken wrist.

Within the Citroen, as a front seat passenger, was Tuke's close friend, Ms Reynolds, who suffered catastrophic injuries and was pronounced dead at the scene.

"Put simply we say all four of these defendants were effectively racing each other, along the A16, one behind the other, all doing grossly excessive speeds and to use the words of some of the witnesses, ‘up the a**e’ of the car in front of them," Mr Janes said.

"The ordinary, competent driver does not use the A16 as a racetrack. The ordinary, competent driver does not drive ‘up the a**e’ of the car in front.

"The way they had been driving, too fast, too close, bears all the hallmarks of competitive driving against each other in some sort of misplaced act of bravado.

"You have to choose to drive in that manner. No-one is making you do that and by choosing to do that, you have chosen to drive dangerously.

"There is a direct link between these four driving in that way as a group and the death of Denii Reynolds and the injuries, as serious as they were, to Margaret Williams. They were all in it together.

“If you all choose to race and compete with each other, it is not surprising that the vehicle in front of you is going to go a bit faster to stay ahead of you. You are all a cause of what happens if it goes wrong.

“They are all as bad as each other."

Images of the mangled Vauxhall Corsa and Tuke’s Citroen were shown to the jury of 10 men and two women as well as dashcam footage of the “convoy” taken from other cars.

Mr Janes said that the four defendants, who were friends, had driven from Cleethorpes to Louth on the night of the incident and had a “cavalier approach” to driving and other road users.

Once arrived, they were seen to be behaving “antisocially” and were “pratting about”, Mr Janes said.

Behind Tuke on the return journey, Dobb, 21, was driving a Ford Fiesta van, Launder, 23, a Mercedes A-Class, and 19-year-old Duncombe a Ford Fiesta.

Prosecutors said analysis found that at the time of the crash, Tuke was driving at speeds between 75mph and 98mph – the latter being the fastest the car could travel, according to its manufacturer – with the collision happening in a 50mph zone.

Dobb was estimated to be driving at between 89mph and 98mph.

Mr Janes said: “We say, travelling at grossly excessive speeds on that road in that manner and ending up on the wrong side of the road can only be described as far below the standard we would expect from an ordinary, competent driver and can only be described as dangerous.

"Put simply, Mr Tuke was thrashing it, driving it at or just on the limits.”

According to analysis of dashcam footage, Mr Dobb's vehicle had been travelling at up to 99mph (159km/h) shortly before the crash, while Tuke's top speed had been calculated to be 98mph (157km/h).

During the trial Mr Janes asked Tuke what exactly he admitted doing wrong if he had no memory of the crash and suggested anywhere close to those speeds "would be considered silly or dangerous".

Tuke agreed, but told the court: "I went a little bit over the speed limit, but it wasn't excessive."

The court heard all four men were of previous good character.

Adam Pearson, mitigating for Tuke, said four otherwise hardworking decent young men will have to face the consequences at a time when they would normally be beginning adulthood.

Mr Pearson said Tuke was himself hospitalised for several months and has never driven again.

Jon Dee, mitigating for Dobb, said he stayed at the scene and tried to help, and told the court he was about to become a father.

Ben Hammersley, mitigating for Launder, said he was just 21 at the time of the collision and had a clean driving record.

Adrian Amer, mitigating for Duncombe, said he was just 17 on the night of the crash and had expressed his remorse in his pre-sentence report, drawing on his own experience as a young father.

"He has not been able to stop thinking about this since the incident occurred."

Following the conclusion of the case, Sergeant Adam Doona, of Lincolnshire Police’s Serious Collision Investigation Unit, said: “Today our thoughts are with the family and friends of Denii and of the driver of the Vauxhall Corsa who received extremely serious injuries.

“There is extensive research which shows that young drivers are involved in a disproportionate number of serious collisions in comparison to the percentage of drivers as a whole.

“The road safety charity Brake list the facts which influence the manner in which young people may drive, some of those factors are carrying passengers, driving at night, speeding and over confidence.

“Young drivers over-estimate their ability to drive safely leading to risky behaviours such as overtaking and speeding.

“The facts of this case relate to speed, distances between vehicles, passengers, the time the collision happened; the actions of the group fit the criteria associated with young drivers being involved in collisions.

“My message today to any driver, including young drivers, is that driving any vehicle comes with a heavy responsibility. To make sure they drive safely and drive within the speed limits; to make sure everyone on our roads gets home safely.

“Sadly, this is not the case for Denii who lost her precious life at 20-years-old. I can’t find the words that will ever make sense of the actions of these drivers on that tragic night.”