A dangerous driver has been jailed after she killed her nine-year-old son in a high-speed crash with a van and lorry.
Barbara Roe, who is diagnosed with bipolar affective disorder, was driving at more than 76mph as she was overtaking a white Ford van on the A354 Salisbury Road, at East Woodyates, north Dorset, colliding head-on with a DAF lorry with a trailer of livestock on March 25, 2024.
Bournemouth Crown Court heard that the 39-year-old, who had been exhibiting symptoms of mania, had been “racing” against the van in a bid to pass it, driving at speeds in excess of 90mph along a stretch of dual carriageway just before the fatal accident.
The collision caused her Citroen hire car to become “airborne”, with the engine becoming detached by the force of the crash and landed “30 yards” away from the vehicle.
Witnesses in a Porsche, which had been overtaken moments before the crash, remarked: “That is so irresponsible that is an accident waiting to happen.”
Roe, of Ludgershall, Wiltshire, was jailed for five years for causing death by dangerous driving and banned from driving for seven-and-a-half years.
Judge Robert Pawson said: “She will carry a life sentence, that burden of knowing for the rest of her life that it was her actions that caused the death of her son.”
He added: “There is clear evidence of a progressive deterioration and it affected her rationality although Mrs Roe suffered from a defect of reason but she knew what she was doing and she knew what she was doing was wrong.”
Siobhan Linsley, prosecuting, told the court that the defendant and Zac’s father, Josh Roe, had recently “unexpectedly” separated and he had become concerned about her mental state.
She said he had attempted to contact the authorities to express his concern about the condition of his wife, who had previously been sectioned in 2022, but no action was taken to prevent her from picking Zac up from school on the day of the fatal crash.
The judge said: “The significant victim who is left alive is his father, Josh Roe, who contacted the police, the school and children’s services in the days before the collision.
“He tried to call Mrs Roe’s psychiatrist and that in itself is a clear indication of the decline in Mrs Roe’s state.”
In a victim impact statement read to the court, Mr Roe said: “I feel so betrayed by the professional services who should have listened to me.”
Describing his son, he said: “He was such an amazing boy, full of life, fearless, clever and he had such a kind heart.
“He would light up any room he went in, he was one of a kind.
“My heart is broken beyond words, I miss Zac so much.”
Mr Roe added that he had suffered suicidal thoughts and had been sectioned following his son’s death.
The court heard that Christopher Roe, Zac’s paternal grandfather, had warned the defendant to drive carefully after she had boasted at how powerful the Citroen car was that she had hired for the day.
She had also previously sent him a message saying that she had been stopped by a police car for speeding at 80mph in a 40mph zone – which the judge said showed an “element of glorification of speed”.
The judge also said that there had been “competitive driving” between the defendant and the van driver in the moments before the crash, before he highlighted that the driver of the cattle truck was “utterly blameless”.
Charles Gabb, defending, said that Roe had been experiencing a “deteriorating mental state” and added: “In that hyperactive state, without properly appreciating what she was doing and what was going on and not in a proper lucid state, this tragedy occurred.”
He added: “Ms Roe has a life sentence, her sense of loss is possibly the greatest of all and the tragedy is that it is self-inflicted.”
Mr Gabb explained that Mrs Roe had wanted to take Zac to visit Durdle Door and had become “agitated” by her wish to get there in time that evening.
After the sentencing, Police Constable Gavin Newbury, of the Serious Collision Investigation Team (SCIT), said: “This tragic case is the cruellest of reminders of the truly devastating consequences that sadly occur when motorists drive in a dangerous or reckless manner.
“Our thoughts are absolutely with Zac’s loved ones, who have been supported by specially trained officers throughout. While we fully appreciate nothing will ever make up for their loss, our role has been to diligently investigate the circumstances of this collision and bring the evidence before the courts to allow the justice process to follow its course.”
