A man has been jailed after admitting causing a collision in Bovington that left his two passengers with serious injuries

Thomas George McConnell, aged 28 and of Water Lane, Winfrith Newburgh, was sentenced at Winchester Crown Court to 20 months in prison on Friday 18 February 2022 after admitting two charges of causing serious injury by dangerous driving and an offence of aggravated vehicle taking as well as offences of drink and drug driving. He was also disqualified from driving for five years. Dorset Police received a report at 6.20am on Saturday 25 July 2020 of a collision in King George V Road involving a BMW 320d that had left the road and struck a telegraph pole before colliding with a tree on the grass verge. Emergency services attended and the two passengers in the vehicle – both men aged in their 20s – were taken to hospital for treatment to serious injuries. One suffered several breaks to his arm as well as broken bones in his toes, lacerations to his liver and to his mouth. The other man sustained a fractured spine and injuries to his bowel. McConnell was also taken to hospital for treatment to a dislocated shoulder as well as numerous cuts and bruises. Enquiries established that the car had been taken from an address in West Lulworth without the owner’s permission shortly before the collision. A sample of McConnell’s blood was taken in hospital and sent for analysis. It was found to contain not less than 112 milligrams of alcohol per 100 millilitres of blood. The legal limit is 80 milligrams of alcohol per 100 millilitres of blood. It was also found to contain more than 200 micrograms of benzoylecgonine – a metabolite of cocaine – per litre of blood, exceeding the specified limit of 50 micrograms per litre. Police Constable Julie Wooliscroft, of Dorset Police’s traffic unit, said: “Thomas McConnell took the extremely reckless and dangerous decision to take a vehicle which did not belong to him and drive it when he was under the influence of drink and drugs. “His actions left the two passengers in his vehicle with serious injuries that required significant medical treatment and serves as a further demonstration of the grave consequences of drink and drug driving. “We are committed to keeping Dorset’s roads safe and will take action to ensure those who pose a risk to others by driving under the influence of drink and drugs are held to account and brought before the courts.”