A 38-year-old man has pleaded guilty to causing serious injury by dangerous driving after he crashed into a mother who managed to pushed her baby's pram out of the way to safety. Dale Clark, of New Milton, Hampshire, was driving a Toyota RAV4 car when it collided with Rebecca Sharp in the Redhill Park area of Bournemouth, Dorset, at 9am on April 11.
Mrs Sharp, aged in her 30s, was taken to hospital with a life-threatening injury where she remains unconscious and in a critical condition, Bournemouth Crown Court has heard. Clark pleaded guilty to the dangerous driving charge and failing to stop after an accident, but denies charges of drink-driving and drug driving after using cocaine.
His barrister, Nick Robinson, told the hearing that the defendant maintains that "he was not under the influence of alcohol and cocaine at the time of the offences" adding that he claims it was post-incident consumption. Judge William Mousley KC said that charges of drink and drug driving had to be tried in the magistrates' court and adjourned the case for sentencing until after these charges had been transferred to the appropriate court.
