Woman killed three men including boyfriend in high-speed crash

A dangerous driver killed three young men in a crash after speeding at more than 92mph in the lead up to the collision.

Jorja Colville was continuing to drive at speeds in excess of 85 mph as she took a bend on a rural road before failing to keep control of the car which crashed, claiming the lives of passengers Reece Williams, Lewis Soden and Connor Page.

A judge told Colville, 21, at the High Court in Edinburgh: “A custodial sentence here is inevitable.”

Lady Ross said there was nothing that could be said to take away “the desperate pain” caused in the lives of the families of the three victims.

Colville, of Stirling, admitted causing the deaths of the car passengers on July 26 last year at the C3 Moss Road near the village of Dunmore, in Stirlingshire, by driving dangerously at excessive speed, failing to maintain control of her Ford Focus, causing it to leave the road and travel onto a verge where it struck a tree.

Advocate depute Scott McKenzie told the court that Colville, an early years assistant, has no previous convictions and no pending cases. He said: “Following the collision she has been diagnosed as suffering from PTSD, anxiety and depression. She is in receipt of medication and therapy.”

The prosecutor said that on the day of the crash, a witness was driving on Moss Road on the approach to the collision site when she saw Colville’s car behind her.

She was travelling at about 60 mph – the applicable speed limit – when the Focus overtook her before pulling back in close to the front of her vehicle.

Mr McKenzie said: “The white Ford Focus pulled away from her at speed.” Following a series of bends in the road she noticed debris on the roadway and then saw the Focus in bushes.

The prosecutor said: “She noted the vehicle was on its side and had sustained serious damage. She stopped her vehicle as she approached the white Ford and saw Jorja Colville covered in blood and screaming for help.”

“Jorja Colville said that there were three other people in the car who couldn’t get out. She described that none of them were awake and that she did not know if they were breathing,” said Mr McKenzie.

Another driver, Dean Norris, saw the Ford car approaching him in the opposing lane. “He saw the white Ford momentarily leave the road surface due to the dip on the road and formed the impression it was travelling at excessive speed. He saw the vehicle land back on the road surface before it lost control as it passed him,” said the prosecutor.

He turned back to offer help and went to the Focus. The advocate depute said: “He could not find any signs of life from the three males still within the vehicle.”

When police arrived Colville confirmed she was the driver and said her boyfriend Reece Williams was in the car along with her friends.

Mr Williams, 23, was found at post mortem to have sustained blunt force injuries to his head, chest, abdomen and limbs in the fatal crash. Mr Soden, 24, suffered multiple injuries to his head, neck, chest, abdomen and pelvis and Mr Page, 21, died from multiple blunt force head and neck injuries.

The court heard that data was recovered from the Ford Focus which showed that it was consistently travelling at over the 60 mph speed limit, but the speed increased greatly on the approach to the crash scene, hitting a maximum speed of 92.6 mph prior to a bend and continuing through the bend at speeds in excess of 85 mph.

Collision investigators said the crash occurred because the driver was “driving at significantly excessive speed for the road layout and approaching hazards of which she was warned of”.

The court heard that a section of the road before the crash site has a series of peaks and troughs with a warning sign in place to alert drivers.

Defence solicitor advocate Gordon Martin KC told the court that Colville, who suffered a broken shoulder and ribs, has not driven since the incident.

He said: “She appreciates, as do her family, that inevitably the court will impose a custodial sentence in relation to this matter.”

Lady Ross adjourned sentence for the preparation of a background report on the first offender and imposed an interim driving disqualification on her. She agreed to continue Colville’s bail ahead of a sentencing hearing at the High Court in Stirling on January 8.