A teenager who only passed his driving test just weeks before causing a "reckless" crash with six friends piled in his car has been jailed.
Jack Clark left multiple people with life-changing injuries following the smash just after 11.30pm on December 3, 2021 in Hitchin, Hertfordshire.
The were seven people including the driver squashed into the silver Ford Fiesta and St Albans Crown Court heard how the vehicle was described as driving "erratically" as it was swerving in and out of lanes while driving at speed.
Clark, 19, lost control and mounted a kerb, which led the vehicle to spin out of control before slamming into a house.
The ambulance service declared major incident as there were so many injured people at the roadside scene.
One of the passengers suffered life-changing injuries including organ damage, bleeds to the brain, and a collapsed lung, leading him to be put into an induced coma.
Clark, from Stevenage, who was 18 at the time, was arrested at the scene and was later charged with four counts of causing serious injury by dangerous driving.
He pleaded guilty and appeared at St Albans Crown Court and was jailed for two years and three months.
He was disqualified from driving for four years.
Herts Police Sergeant Tom Pearson, who led the investigation, said: “Jack had only passed his driving test 24 days prior to the collision, and had only had the car for 17 days.
"His driving was reckless, dangerous and has evidently had serious consequences for all involved.
“Speeding and driving dangerously is not impressive – especially when you risk serious and devastating consequences as evidenced in this case.
"Just prior to the collision, his passengers repeatedly pleaded with him to slow down and were understandably scared of the manner in which he was driving the car.
“All of the occupants of the vehicle were seriously injured, with some of them sustaining life changing injuries that will impact them forever – I hope Clark is aware, that as result of his reckless use of the road, he was fortunate that his actions did not leave a family grieving for their loved one.
“Please think twice about getting into a car with someone if you have any reservations at all about their manner of driving; it’s not worth the risks.”
