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First published on Thursday 12 September 2002:
No jail for cabbie who fell asleep
by our news team
A taxi driver who almost killed four people when he fell asleep after 19 hours at the wheel escaped a jail term today.
But Michael Breeds, 55, faces ruin after being banned from the road for two years.
He had been working without a break when he nodded off and smashed into the back of a parked van.
Breeds, of Marine Drive, Bishopstone, near Seaford, was driving four friends back from a birthday celebration at a Brighton nightclub.
The crash happened on the A259 at Peacehaven in the early hours of August 25, last year.
Passenger Andrew Wynn, 28, of Barn Rise, Seaford, broke his neck in the accident and had to wear a neck brace for three months.
His girlfriend Nicola Dillon, 23, and friends Joseph Sheath and Ryan Furminger were also seriously injured.
Mr Furminger, whose 31st birthday they were celebrating, is still receiving treatment and fears he will suffer pain for the rest of his life.
Breeds denied dangerous driving but was convicted by a jury at Lewes Crown Court last month.
He tried to convince the jury he only needed four hours sleep a night and that the crash happened because he was momentarily distracted.
Judge David Rennie, sentencing him at Hove Crown Court today, warned Breeds he had only narrowly avoided being sent to prison.
He said: "You breached the trust all passengers are entitled to have in taxi drivers.
"For the sake of earning extra money you were prepared to work more hours than you should have."
Breeds was ordered to do 240 hours community service, disqualified from driving for two years and ordered to take an extended driving test at the end of the ban.
Jeremy Wainright, defending, said Breeds relied solely on taxi driving for a living and said it was unlikely he would be able to work again if he was jailed.
Judge Rennie said he was satisfied that jailing Breeds would cause his family undue hardship.
Neither Breeds or any of the relatives of the four injured passengers wanted to comment as they left court.
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Privacy Policy © Copyright 2002 Newsquest Media Group - A Gannett Company
First published on Thursday 12 September 2002:
No jail for cabbie who fell asleep
by our news team
A taxi driver who almost killed four people when he fell asleep after 19 hours at the wheel escaped a jail term today.
But Michael Breeds, 55, faces ruin after being banned from the road for two years.
He had been working without a break when he nodded off and smashed into the back of a parked van.
Breeds, of Marine Drive, Bishopstone, near Seaford, was driving four friends back from a birthday celebration at a Brighton nightclub.
The crash happened on the A259 at Peacehaven in the early hours of August 25, last year.
Passenger Andrew Wynn, 28, of Barn Rise, Seaford, broke his neck in the accident and had to wear a neck brace for three months.
His girlfriend Nicola Dillon, 23, and friends Joseph Sheath and Ryan Furminger were also seriously injured.
Mr Furminger, whose 31st birthday they were celebrating, is still receiving treatment and fears he will suffer pain for the rest of his life.
Breeds denied dangerous driving but was convicted by a jury at Lewes Crown Court last month.
He tried to convince the jury he only needed four hours sleep a night and that the crash happened because he was momentarily distracted.
Judge David Rennie, sentencing him at Hove Crown Court today, warned Breeds he had only narrowly avoided being sent to prison.
He said: "You breached the trust all passengers are entitled to have in taxi drivers.
"For the sake of earning extra money you were prepared to work more hours than you should have."
Breeds was ordered to do 240 hours community service, disqualified from driving for two years and ordered to take an extended driving test at the end of the ban.
Jeremy Wainright, defending, said Breeds relied solely on taxi driving for a living and said it was unlikely he would be able to work again if he was jailed.
Judge Rennie said he was satisfied that jailing Breeds would cause his family undue hardship.
Neither Breeds or any of the relatives of the four injured passengers wanted to comment as they left court.
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Privacy Policy © Copyright 2002 Newsquest Media Group - A Gannett Company
Injury claim by cab crash four
by our news team
Victims of a taxi crash who were badly injured when the driver fell asleep at the wheel are seeking compensation.
Michael Breeds, 55, who yesterday narrowly escaped a jail sentence, had been behind the wheel for 19 hours without a break when he nodded off and smashed into the back of a parked Transit van.
Breeds, of Marine Drive, Bishopstone, near Seaford, was driving four friends back from a birthday celebration at a Brighton night club when the crash happened on the A259 at Peacehaven in the early hours of August 25 last year.
Passenger Andrew Wynn, 29, of Barn Rise, Seaford, broke his neck and had to wear a brace for three months.
His girlfriend Nicola Dillon, 23, and friends Joseph Sheath and Ryan Furminger were also seriously injured.
Mr Furminger, whose 31st birthday they were celebrating, is still receiving treatment and fears he will suffer pain for the rest of his life.
Breeds was sentenced to 240 hours' community service, disqualified from driving for two years and ordered to take an extended driving test at the end of the ban.
After the hearing, Mr Wynn, who has not yet fully recovered from his injuries and has been unable to return to work as a motor mechanic at Birchwood Ford, Eastbourne, said all the passengers were pursuing personal injury claims through Breeds' insurance company.
He has not yet been given an indication of how much they are likely to receive.
He said: "We are taking action on the advice of solicitors but it may take some time before we know how much we are entitled to.
"I was told by my doctor that if my neck had been broken half an inch farther down, I would have been paralysed.
"Hearing that news made it very hard for me to recover mentally. For the first six months after the accident I felt I couldn't do anything and was very low. It was like my life was on hold.
"I am still taking pain killers for my neck and have difficulty moving it. Doctors say they will not know for another year if it will be damaged permanently."
Breeds had denied dangerous driving but was convicted by a jury at Lewes Crown Court last month.
Judge David Rennie at Hove Crown Court yesterday warned Breeds he had only narrowly avoided being sent to prison.
He said: "You breached the trust all passengers are entitled to have in taxi drivers.
"Their passengers have the right to feel confident they can have one hundred per cent confidence in them.
"For the sake of earning extra money you were prepared to work more hours than you should have."
by our news team
Victims of a taxi crash who were badly injured when the driver fell asleep at the wheel are seeking compensation.
Michael Breeds, 55, who yesterday narrowly escaped a jail sentence, had been behind the wheel for 19 hours without a break when he nodded off and smashed into the back of a parked Transit van.
Breeds, of Marine Drive, Bishopstone, near Seaford, was driving four friends back from a birthday celebration at a Brighton night club when the crash happened on the A259 at Peacehaven in the early hours of August 25 last year.
Passenger Andrew Wynn, 29, of Barn Rise, Seaford, broke his neck and had to wear a brace for three months.
His girlfriend Nicola Dillon, 23, and friends Joseph Sheath and Ryan Furminger were also seriously injured.
Mr Furminger, whose 31st birthday they were celebrating, is still receiving treatment and fears he will suffer pain for the rest of his life.
Breeds was sentenced to 240 hours' community service, disqualified from driving for two years and ordered to take an extended driving test at the end of the ban.
After the hearing, Mr Wynn, who has not yet fully recovered from his injuries and has been unable to return to work as a motor mechanic at Birchwood Ford, Eastbourne, said all the passengers were pursuing personal injury claims through Breeds' insurance company.
He has not yet been given an indication of how much they are likely to receive.
He said: "We are taking action on the advice of solicitors but it may take some time before we know how much we are entitled to.
"I was told by my doctor that if my neck had been broken half an inch farther down, I would have been paralysed.
"Hearing that news made it very hard for me to recover mentally. For the first six months after the accident I felt I couldn't do anything and was very low. It was like my life was on hold.
"I am still taking pain killers for my neck and have difficulty moving it. Doctors say they will not know for another year if it will be damaged permanently."
Breeds had denied dangerous driving but was convicted by a jury at Lewes Crown Court last month.
Judge David Rennie at Hove Crown Court yesterday warned Breeds he had only narrowly avoided being sent to prison.
He said: "You breached the trust all passengers are entitled to have in taxi drivers.
"Their passengers have the right to feel confident they can have one hundred per cent confidence in them.
"For the sake of earning extra money you were prepared to work more hours than you should have."
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