Michael Uncles, 59, was nearly four times the legal drink-drive limit when he performed an illegal manoeuvre and crashed into a police van, leaving two officers with serious injuries. One officer said he "genuinely thought he was going to die."
Crash Details
Uncles had pulled into a Texaco petrol station near Cardiff city centre around 11:30pm on October 19 last year. CCTV footage showed him clearly intoxicated. He later got into his Vauxhall Astra and drove onto North Road toward the Gabalfa flyover.
PC Thomas Lewis and PC Guy Russell were in a Ford Transit police van traveling in the same direction with blue lights and sirens, responding to an emergency. Prosecutor Abdallah Barakat told Cardiff Crown Court that Uncles approached traffic lights and turned right despite signs prohibiting the manoeuvre. As he turned, the police van was traveling at speed in the adjacent lane, and Uncles' car struck the van, causing it to collide with the central reservation.
Injuries Suffered
Both officers were taken to the University Hospital of Wales. PC Lewis suffered a deformed left wrist, bruises, a knee wound, two fractures to his left forearm, and a wrist fracture. PC Russell experienced severe right wrist pain and a wound and swelling to his left cheek. Both required surgery.
In a victim personal statement read to the court, PC Lewis said: "The incident has changed my life negatively in every aspect... It affected me physically and mentally. Two weeks after the collision I was in severe pain awaiting a date for surgery on my arm. I was on strong painkillers... but I felt pain and dizziness." He added that he missed his best friend's wedding as best man and a family holiday, and could not pick up or play with his two-year-old son.
PC Russell stated: "I was an active individual who regularly attended the gym multiple times a week and felt good about myself. I was a sociable person and my mental health was in a good place but since the incident everything has changed." He described panic and discomfort as a passenger, hyper-awareness of vehicles, and fear of another incident. "My right wrist was shattered... I had to be sedated so my wrist could be put back in place... The reality is my arm would never be the same. I struggle to sleep and have nightmares... I genuinely thought I was going to lose my life that night."
Breathalyser Readings
At the scene, Uncles gave a breath test reading of 127 micrograms per 100ml of breath—more than 3.5 times the legal limit of 35 micrograms. At Cardiff Bay police station, he gave readings of 123 and 109 micrograms. He told officers he did not see the police van.
Sentencing
Uncles, of Tyndall Street, Butetown, pleaded guilty to two counts of causing serious injury by dangerous driving and one count of drink-driving. He has 25 previous convictions.
In mitigation, barrister Nik Strobl said his client was ashamed and wished to apologize. He said Uncles' drinking reached a "new level" due to family issues and his father's throat cancer diagnosis, and that Uncles had taken steps to address his drinking and was entering a rehabilitation programme.
Recorder of Cardiff Judge Tracey Lloyd-Clarke sentenced Uncles to two years and four months imprisonment and disqualified him from driving for four years and two months.
