A mom of three filmed herself on Snapchat speeding down the freeway at 88 mph before hitting a barrier.
The force of the impact ripped the engine out of the car.
Crystal Ward, 27, was driving her VW Golf on the M60 entry lane off Junctions 6 and 7 when she recorded the eight-second video, Manchester Evening News reports.
The footage showed her dashboard – including your speedometer – and had loud music in the background as it approached the motorway.
Shortly before the video was interrupted, her partner could be heard saying ‘Babe’ as the car pulled into the hatching as the car entered the main lane.
Ward of Bradford hit the barrier at the speed that knocked her from the driver’s seat – and ripped the engine block out of the car.
Another driver collided with the engine in the fourth lane, but luckily got away with a puncture.
Tests showed Ward was more than four times the drug limit for cannabis, Minshull Street Crown Court heard.
To plead guilty at a previous hearing, to have drugs behind the wheel, to drive with disqualification, and to drive without insurance.
She narrowly escaped jail.
Prosecutor Peter Connick said Ward was driving a passenger on the M60 in Trafford at around 1:45 a.m. on June 11 last year.
“She was driving on the slipway off exits 6 and 7 and while driving, she used one hand on the steering wheel and the other to hold her cell phone to take a video of the dashboard,” Connick said.
“The video shows the speed of 88 miles per hour reached before the recording stops.
“Just before the footage ends, the passenger can be heard calling out ‘Babe’ to the accused as the speed increases.
“The last frames show the vehicle entering the hatching between the slide and the entrance to the main lane.”
The court heard that Ward collided with the bull nose of the Armco guardrail that separates the driveway from the main carriageway.
The vehicle then blew up and collided with two light masts.
“The accused was thrown out of the vehicle and landed on the nearby grass verge,” the public prosecutor continued.
The Peugeot suffered only one puncture in the collision
(Image: CPS / GMP)
“Due to the immense force of the impact, the engine block of the Golf was torn from the vehicle and came to a halt on lane 4 of the M60.
“A Peugeot driver collided with the engine on the front wheel and punctured the tire.”
When the officers arrived, they found that the passenger was trapped in the passenger seat due to the “deformity of the car”.
Paramedics handed an officer to Ward and discovered the footage captured on Snapchat.
The engine was ripped out of the car
(Image: CPS / GMP)
When her phone was further checked, it emerged that there were multiple videos of her driving with the camera over the steering wheel, the court heard.
A forensic collision investigator concluded that Ward hit the guardrail at high speed, leaving the vehicle in the middle of the lane.
Ward was banned from driving as early as August 2022 for a previous drug driving offense committed in March 2019 that banned her for 40 months.
Breath tests later showed that she had eight milligrams of cannabis in 100 milliliters of breath – the legal limit was two milligrams.
Ward reportedly had seven previous convictions for nine offenses, including drink-driving, disqualified driving and drug-driving.
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On the subject of matching items
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On the subject of matching items
The Crown said it had shown “willful disregard for the safety of others,” including its passenger.
On a mitigative note, Sarah Johnston informed the court that her client was thrown out of the car, suggesting that she was not wearing a seat belt and that she suffered spinal fractures.
“Your words, ‘I’ll never get behind the wheel of a car again – I could have killed people,'” said Ms. Johnston.
“There are traits in her personal history that suggest she is clearly a vulnerable woman.
The engine was thrown into the fourth lane of the freeway
(Image: CPS / GMP)
“She is the mother of three children who are subject to special guardianship from their paternal grandparents.
“The passenger was injured, but he supports the defendant.
“She is motivated to leave this decision-making behind.”
Recorder Jon Close condemned her, saying, “You are not going to jail today – you should be grateful to your lawyer.
“For some unknown reason, you drove straight into that barrier and the impact caused the car to blow up and the engine to blow out of the vehicle.
“It could easily have caused a death.”
Crystal Ward of Gibson Street was sentenced to 12 months in prison with two years’ suspension, 15 days of rehabilitation activities and a three-month electronically monitored curfew between 9:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m.
In addition, she was banned from driving for five years and has to take another exam.
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