Video: Horrific Dash Cam Footage Shows The Moment A Sunderland Father Was Killed By Drug Driver
Northumbria Police have released this video showing the harrowing moment a car being driven by a drunk and drug driver lost control and killed a 33-year-old father from Sunderland.
33-year-old Ritchie Jordan was a passenger in the Mercedes that was being driven by work colleague Mark Thompson when he lost control and flipped the vehicle on the A19, near Sunderland, after exceeding speeds of more than 120 mph.
Thompson, who survived the crash, was over the limit for both drugs and alcohol when the incident happened, he has been jailed for six years and eight months after pleading guilty to causing death by dangerous driving.
Carol King, Richie's partner, requested that Northumbria Police released the dash cam footage of the crash in a hope that it will deter others from getting behind the wheel while under the influence.
Ms King, 30, said: "I used to be the person who read about these tragic incidents. Then it happened to my family. People don't realise at the time when under the influence of drink or drugs, all inhibitions and common sense go out of the window. Other road users, pedestrians, and even your own passengers' safety, and your own doesn't register and isn't called into question, the recklessness completely spirals.
"Before Richie passed I probably wouldn't challenge somebody who had been drinking but you see it all the time, people pushing the boundaries. 'I'll just have a couple,' it's only down the road, 'I'll be fine, it will only take five minutes.' Now I wouldn't think twice about challenging someone I knew who's over the limit. "On the night Richie died that was precisely what happened. A number of decisions were made without thinking or being challenged. It has destroyed the lives of so many people. One moment - getting behind the wheel under the influence of drink and drugs - and for what?"
Richie was a back seat passenger in the car when it crashed in Houghton-le-Spring in August 2019. A front seat passenger, Lewis Atkinson, suffered a bleed on the brain.
VIDEO: Dash Cam Footage Showing The Incident
Just several weeks after Richie died, Carol found out that she was pregnant with Richie's second child, due to the actions taken that night both of the little girls will now grow up without their dad.
Mark Thompson, 42, of Seaton Crescent, Seaham, County Durham, was sentenced to six years and eight months behind bars after pleading guilty to causing death by dangerous driving and causing serious injury by dangerous driving. He was also banned from driving for three years - the ban will start when he is released from prison.
Sergeant Glen Robson, of Northumbria Police, said: "By making the decision to get behind the wheel, you are rolling the dice with people's lives. As this awful case shows, it can have irreversible consequences and ruin more than one life in an instant. "This footage showing the moment before Richie's death is hard-hitting and harrowing. We're releasing it for a reason - to try and help get the message through to people. "We all have a responsibility to help make our roads as safe as they possibly can be for all road users. Anyone who flouts the law and gambles with other people's lives will be dealt with robustly."
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