A pregnant mother of two has been sentenced to two years in prison after causing a serious car crash while six times over the legal alcohol limit.
Charlotte Aitken, 37, from Cumbernauld, North Lanarkshire, drove her Audi onto the wrong side of the road, colliding head-on with another vehicle. Four family members in the other car were injured, with three suffering serious injuries. The sheriff noted that Aitken was “highly impaired” by alcohol and stated that it was fortunate no one was killed.
Aitken pleaded guilty to causing serious injury and endangering lives by driving dangerously while intoxicated. The incident occurred on February 28 last year in Cumbernauld.
Prosecutor Kevin Morrow explained that the crash involved a Hyundai driven by a woman with her 13-year-old son in the front seat and her husband and 21-year-old daughter in the back. The collision took place around 6:30 PM when it was dark. The driver behind Aitken noticed her swerving into the opposite lane and attempted to warn her by sounding his horn and flashing his lights.
However, the Hyundai driver saw Aitken’s headlights but had no time to react. Aitken, traveling between 40 and 50 miles per hour in a 40-mile-per-hour zone, did not brake before the collision.
The female driver of the Hyundai was unconscious and had to be cut from the wreckage. She sustained a deep knee laceration that required surgery, along with five fractured ribs and a broken wrist. Her daughter suffered bowel damage and underwent two surgeries, while her husband faced fractures to his ribs and breastbone, also requiring bowel surgery.
The couple’s son escaped with bruises but has since needed cognitive behavioral therapy due to the trauma of the accident.
Morrow stated that a passing motorist helped Aitken, who was semi-conscious, out of her severely damaged vehicle. She was taken to the hospital for a leg injury and was found to have a strong smell of alcohol. A breath test showed she had at least 305mg of alcohol per 100ml of blood, well above the legal limit of 50mg.
Defense lawyer David Storrie said Aitken, who is 12 weeks pregnant and has two teenage children, accepted full responsibility for the crash. He noted her remorse and shame for putting others in danger. A social worker indicated that Aitken was devastated discussing the impact of the crash on the victims.
Since the incident, Aitken has taken steps to reduce her alcohol consumption and completed a 16-week inpatient treatment program.
In passing sentence, Sheriff Paul Haran stated that Aitken’s driving was “highly impaired by your consumption of alcohol.” He emphasized the injuries suffered by the four people in the other vehicle, including a child, some of whom required multiple surgeries.
Haran acknowledged Aitken’s struggles with alcohol dependency and mental health but noted that the severity of her actions warranted a custodial sentence. He also disqualified her from driving for seven years and mandated that she retake her driving test after her release.
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