February 3rd 2024.
It was a terrifying moment that left hearts racing when a Tesla driver, under the influence of cannabis, crashed into a car carrying a family of five on a busy motorway. The incident was captured on a dashcam, showing the driver, Josselin Herjean, a 51-year-old IT manager, recklessly swerving from the middle lane into the outside lane before colliding with the back of a white BMW. The BMW, carrying Kirsty Skinner, who had just given birth, her three children, and her partner, was pushed into the concrete central reservation, launching it into the air and leaving it out of control in a cloud of smoke.
Despite the severity of the crash, miraculously, no one was injured, and the newborn baby was still safe in the hospital. However, the family was left traumatized, as they shared in their impact statement. The incident, which occurred on the M17 in Southampton, Hants, last October, was described in court as a "minor miracle" that no one was hurt. The court also heard that Ms. Skinner, who had just undergone a C-section, screamed in fear for her babies when the crash happened.
Eleanor Randall, a nurse who witnessed the collision, testified that Herjean showed no remorse or compassion towards the family. Instead, she found him throwing clothes out of his vehicle when she went to check on him. It was revealed in court that Herjean was going through a psychotic episode due to the stress of his high-pressure job in the stock exchange. The judge, who watched the dashcam footage during the hearing, expressed his relief that no one was injured in the accident.
According to the prosecution, Adrian Fleming, a witness, Ms. Randall, saw Herjean's red Tesla overtaking another vehicle at a speed of over 100 miles per hour. Meanwhile, the BMW, which was travelling at 70 miles per hour, was in the process of overtaking a vehicle in the fourth lane when the Tesla suddenly swerved into the same lane and collided with it from behind. The impact was so severe that the BMW was sent flying into the air and hit the central reservation before crashing back onto the road.
When Ms. Randall confronted Herjean about his excessive speed, he simply shrugged it off, showing no concern for the safety of the family he had just endangered. He did not even bother to check on them after the collision. In a victim impact statement read in court, Ms. Skinner's partner, Jamie Swinfield, described the incident as a "sucker punch to the head," and expressed his fear that his newborn daughter could have been orphaned.
Police investigations revealed that Herjean had tested negative for alcohol but had tested positive for cannabis. He also refused to provide a blood sample at the police station. As a result, he pleaded guilty to dangerous driving and failing to provide a specimen for analysis. In sentencing, Herjean was given a 16-week prison sentence, suspended for a year, and was banned from driving for 18 months. He was also ordered to do 130 hours of community service, attend 15 days of rehabilitation activities, and cover court costs of £425.
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