A man caused a crash which left his ex-girlfriend with life changing injuries and forced to rely on a wheelchair for the rest of her life.
David Croxton claimed that Tanya Buckley was ‘the love of his life’ but he left her needing to have her left foot amputated after crashing into a moving car and throwing her from the back of his motorbike.
The accident happened when Croxton was taking Tanya to his flat to talk about their relationship after she told him it was over and that she was now seeing someone new.
Croxton, 34, was found guilty in June of causing serious injury by dangerous driving and was jailed for two years.
Tanya, 27, said her life has changed forever.
She said: “David was controlling towards me. He was very demanding and for most of the relationship, I was wary of him.
“He wanted sex twice a day and it was too much for me, but at the same time, I didn’t want to cross him.
“I know I shouldn’t have got on his bike; I did it in a moment of madness, because I was in a panic and trying to calm him down. I will live with that for the rest of my life.
Tanya met Croxton six years ago, at a party at her dad’s house and they quickly became an item.
Tanya said: “David offered me security and stability. He had his own place, I moved in, and it was everything I’d always wanted. David worked in a warehouse, he earned all the money, and he said he wanted to look after me.
“At the time I thought he was being gentlemanly. I was only 19 when we met, he was seven years older, and I’d come from a difficult background. So I put all my trust in him.”
But as time went on, Croxton became controlling and manipulative.
She added: “He controlled all the money. He wanted the house kept clean and his meals cooked, and he wanted sex twice a day. If I didn’t do as he wanted, he would lose his temper and then I wouldn’t get any money.
“I had a difficult relationship with my family, but David made it much worse. He told me nobody cared about me, except him. He made me think that he was all I had.
“He wasn’t violent, but he was verbally very cruel.”
Early in 2019, Tanya suspected David had been unfaithful to her and she moved out. She began seeing a new partner.
She says: “I told David that it was over, but he didn’t believe me. At 6am the following morning he turned up outside my new boyfriend’s home on his motorbike and demanded an explanation. He was making a scene and he wanted me to go back to his flat so we could talk.
“I could see he wasn’t going to go away and so I agreed to go with him, just to calm him down. I got on the bike without a helmet which was such a stupid thing to do. I just wasn’t thinking straight. I was in such a panic.”
Croxton drove off at speed, overtaking a long line of stationary traffic before crashing into a turning Peugeot. Tanya was flung from the motorbike and was badly injured as she landed on a metal bollard. She was airlifted to hospital.
Her left foot had to be amputated and her right knee and arm were badly damaged. She had several broken bones and ligament damage and was in hospital for a month.
In June 2021, David Croxton denied causing serious injury by dangerous driving, blaming the Peugeot driver, but was found guilty by a jury at Liverpool Crown Court.
He was jailed for two years.
Tanya says: “I felt the sentencing was a joke. David lied in court and said we were back together, which is just not true. I never want to see him again.
“I’m single now and I plan to stay that way.”
