A banned driver who killed his friend as he drove them to work was jailed for two years and three months yesterday.
Ballymena Crown Court sitting in Antrim heard that Kristopher Anderson Gault (24) had been banned from driving six months before the accident on March 12th, 2002.
Mr Paul Ramsey, prosecuting, told the court that Gault, from Gracehill Road, Ballymoney, was driving himself and 17-year-old Robert Wilmont to work in his girlfriend's BMW when he tried to overtake a tractor that was turning right on the Dunminning Road in Glarryford, near Ballymena.
Mr Ramsey said that while it was not possible to estimate at what speed Gault had been travelling, the force of the impact sheared off part of the tractor's grab mechanism.
Mr Wilmont, who was in the back seat, died in the Royal Victoria Hospital, Belfast, three days later from a head injury.
Gault was also hurt in the accident, suffering four fractured vertebrae.
"It will come as no surprise to learn that the emergency services had to free, cut, the people out of the car," said Mr Ramsey.
He told the Crown Court that Ballymena Magistrates' Court had banned Gault from driving for 12 months the previous September after he had been caught drink-driving, speeding and driving with no insurance.
The lawyer told the court that Mr Wilmont's family "do not bear any vengeance or hostility" towards Gault but added that they "are obviously distressed" about the case.
Mr Ramsey said that during police interviews, Gault tried to lay the blame at the door of the tractor driver by claiming he had not been indicating to turn right.
Gault admitted causing Mr Wilmont's death by dangerous driving, driving while disqualified and driving without insurance.
Mr Frank O'Donoghue, defending, claimed Gault was only driving to work that day because their intended lift had let them down, adding that he was a "man in his 20s who was committed to his work and took a chance not thinking of the consequences of his actions".
Jailing Gault and banning him from driving for four years, the judge said there was "growing public concern about young male drivers and their inability to drive in a safe manner...and the courts must reflect that".
"No-one gets behind the wheel of a car or attempts a manoeuvre, no matter how foolish, intending to kill someone.
"However, all drivers must realise that cars are lethal weapons that pose a risk to all road users," he added.