Op Snap | Kilgetty driver given 8-month suspended prison sentence

A dangerous driver who overtook a row of stationary cars at high speed whilst his young daughter was in the car, has been given an 8-month suspended sentence and been disqualified from driving for 18 months.

David Evans of West Williamston, Kilgetty, was sentenced on Friday, 22^nd February 2022, having earlier been convicted of dangerous driving at Swansea Crown Court. He received an 8-month prison sentence, suspended for 15 months and an 18-month driving ban, after which he will need to take an extended retest. He will also be made to complete 100 hours unpaid work and pay £1500 in prosecution fees.

At 12:52pm on Saturday, 6^th March 2020, Mr Evans was witnessed carrying out a dangerous manoeuvre on the A477 bypass, between Llanddowror and Red Roses. Whilst traffic waited at a set of temporary traffic lights in roadworks, Mr Evans’ grey Tesla overtook a row of vehicles at approximately double the temporary speed limit of 40mph, before almost colliding with the vehicle at the front of the queue as it moved away at the green light.

This leading vehicle was equipped with a dashcam and the footage from that camera was sent to Dyfed-Powys Police via ‘Op Snap’, the driving offence submission service run by GoSafe. The submission led to an investigation by the GoSafe team that included Steve Callaghan, from Road Safety Support, calculating the speed that the Tesla was travelling at.

When viewing the recording, it was clear from the outset that, without the quick actions of the leading vehicle in checking over their shoulder and reacting to the Tesla, a serious or fatal collision would have occurred.

Mr Evans was identified and interviewed, during which time he denied the allegations, disagreed with the speed calculation, and added that he would never drive dangerously with his daughter in the car.

Mr Evans maintained his innocence late into the judicial process and expert reports produced by the defence suggested the road signage was not adequate. Numerous arguments, defences and mitigation were put forward prior to trial, resulting with a direction by the court that all expert witnesses come together and produce a joint report for the purposes of hearing at court.

A late change to a guilty plea was entered by the defence prior to trial.

This is a prime example of the many near misses we have on our roads whereby impatience and a complete disregard for the rules of the highway, put people at risk of serious harm or fatal injury. Operation Snap is proving to be an effective tool to help Dyfed-Powys Police and GoSafe take the necessary actions against people who pose this risk.