Manchester Personal Injury
A disabled teenage driver was twice the drink-drive limit and had been smoking cannabis when he crashed after speeding at up to 120mph, killing himself and his friend.
Will Paton and passenger William Sheppard, both 18, died instantly in the crash on Boxing Day last year.
Moments before, Paton lost control of his high-powered black Golf TSi he was driving one-handed with his mobile phone in his other hand.
Two other friends, who were also in the car, survived with minor injuries.
An inquest in Macclesfield heard how all four teenagers had downed pints of beer and shots of spirits at Parrs Wood entertainment complex in East Didsbury, Greater Manchester, hours before the crash at 11.50pm.
Paton and Sheppard - who worked at the Malmaison hotel in Manchester - and friend Louis Drinkwater, who survived, had also smoked cannabis.
The friends decided to drive to Tesco at Handforth Dean. But Paton, who was registered disabled and bought the car on a Mobility scheme, lost control of the vehicle as he left the A555 slip-road on to the A34 at Handforth Dean.
The car careered into a roundabout and was flung down an embankment into a field.
A police investigation into the crash found the car had been travelling at up to 78mph when it hit the roundabout, but witnesses said it had reached 120mph along the A555.
Sergeant Andrew Dennison said: 'This accident was caused by the vehicle coming off the A555 at a speed I consider to be wholly inappropriate.
'This young man has crashed killing himself and his friend.'
Drinkwater, the best friend of trainee chef Sheppard, said: 'We approached the roundabout and were going way too fast so I braced myself.
'I heard the scrape of a wheel and the car lost control. The next thing I knew it was in orbit.
'I was absolutely terrified and remember looking out the front windscreen and seeing the sky and a fence.
We must have been flipping multiple times. I shouted to the lads but there was no response.
'The car stopped and steam started coming in. I thought petrol was pouring onto me.
'I managed to kick through the window and sprinted away thinking the car was going to explode.
'Then I realised it wasn't petrol on me, it was blood. I knew it wasn't mine.
'The ambulance man told me both my friends had passed away. I couldn't describe the feeling, I was just in total shock. William Sheppard was my best mate.'
Guy Hopkinson, the fourth passenger who survived with a sprained back, said his best friend, Paton, was usually a good driver but he added he had sometimes driven quite 'idiotically' or dangerously in his car, which was described as his pride and joy.
Coroner Jean Harkin recorded a verdict of misadventure for Paton and one of accidental death for Sheppard.
The families of the former Bramhall High pupils, both from Stockport, paid tribute to their sons.
Paton, who was registered disabled due to a condition affecting his feet and knees, had been due to turn 19 the day after the crash.
His family said he was not a regular drinker or a 'boy racer type'.
His mother Rachel Paton, of Thornway, Stockport, said: 'Will was a very well-known character at Bramhall High and it was a shock to us that he had been drink-driving.
'He was not a regular drinker and we feel that this night was a one-off disastrous accident.
'We weren't aware of him being what might be called a boy racer. His disability had made him an extremely strong and brave character.' Sheppard's father, Geoffrey, of Cheadle, said: 'William was a gentle, kind and compassionate young man.
'We find it hard to believe that he would have got in the car knowing that the driver had been drinking.
'It's something that really haunts myself and my family and unfortunately he is not here to ask the question of.'
source: dailymail.co.uk
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