Girl 'scared' before fatal crash

Abigail Simpson died of her injuries following the crash

A teenage girl has told a court how she was "frightened" in the moments before a car she was travelling in crashed, killing her 15-year-old friend.

Hazel Keeton, 17, claimed driver Scott Manson had been travelling fast and overtook another car as they entered a 30mph zone in Castletown, Caithness.

She told the jury at the High Court in Inverness that Mr Manson had then lost control of the Ford Fiesta and crashed.

Mr Manson denies causing death by dangerous driving.

Abigail Simpson, who was in the back seat behind the front passenger, took the full impact of the crash and died of her injuries.

Ms Keeton told the court she was picked up by Mr Manson, 20, along with Ms Simpson and another 14-year-old girl, Deniz Turanli, in Thurso on the evening of 6 October 2007 to go to a party in nearby Castletown, about five miles away.

Scott was trying to straighten up but lost control of the car and crashed into a wall Hazel Keeton

A statement she gave to police just hours after the crash was read out by Advocate Depute Keith Stewart.

In it, Ms Keeton said she could feel Mr Manson accelerating to catch up with a silver car that had overtaken them.

She added: "We were travelling pretty fast and I was a little frightened at the speed Scott was going. I can't say exactly what speed Scott was travelling at because I couldn't see the speedometer.

"Once we were getting close to Castletown, Scott pulled out and started to overtake the silver car. They were alongside each other for a few seconds, still travelling very fast.

"Just as we got in to the 30mph speed limit at Castletown, Scott managed to get past the silver car. He was still travelling fast, but had slowed down slightly.

"As we came into the right hand bend Scott was cutting the corner and the back end of the car was coming around skidding. Scott was trying to straighten up but lost control of the car and crashed into a wall."

Suffered bruising

Ms Keeton told the court that the evidence she had given in the statement was the truth.

Under cross-examination from Edgar Prais QC, representing Mr Manson, she admitted she had been texting a friend during the journey and was not fully concentrating.

She also admitted being "hysterical" following the crash and was still upset when interviewed in Caithness General Hospital, Wick, in the early hours of the following morning, about five hours after the crash.

Ms Keeton said she only suffered bruising and cuts as a result of the crash.

The court has previously heard Mr Manson, also of Castletown, had "just passed his test and had never been in the car before".

The girls were in the back seat of the Ford Fiesta, while Mr Manson drove the car, his friend Daryl Thomson was in the front passenger seat, and another friend Marc Pollard was in the boot, hidden under the shelf.

The trial before Lord Pentland continues.