Double fatal crash driver jailed

Macpherson had previously been jailed for dangerous driving

A driver who admitted causing the deaths of his partner and her mother by dangerous driving has been sentenced to six years and nine months in prison.

The High Court in Edinburgh had earlier heard that the wreckage of Stephen Macpherson's car had resembled the debris of an air crash.

His partner Lynn Paterson, 41, was killed and her mother Margaret McGarvie, 70, later died in hospital.

Macpherson, 45, from Troon, crashed on a Black Isle road in April 2007.

The case took so long to come to court because Macpherson suffered a head injury in the crash.

Judge Lord Menzies said Macpherson had a "cavalier and dangerous attitude" to traffic rules after hearing that he had previously been jailed for nine months for dangerous driving and also had convictions involving drink and driving.

The crash in 2007 happened on a hump-backed bridge at the end of a section of road in the Black Isle, near Inverness, known locally as the Culicudden straight.

The consequence of his driving has left two of his passengers without their mother and grandmother Insp John Smith Northern Constabulary

The court heard that seconds before the crash Macpherson's passengers - who also included Ms Paterson's daughters aged 15 and 10 - begged him to slow down.

Lord Menzies told Macpherson: "You were driving at a crazy speed on a minor road and you continued at this speed over an obvious hazard, namely a hump-backed bridge, which caused you to lose control of the car.

"You continued to drive at this reckless speed despite warnings and entreaties from your passengers to slow down."

Following sentencing, district procurator fiscal for Dingwall, Stella Swan, said the case showed the devastating effect that road offences have on friends and families.

She added: "I hope it will be of some comfort to the family that justice has now been done in this case with the man responsible for causing this horrific crash behind bars."

The head of the Northern Constabulary's road policing section, Insp John Smith, said Macpherson's conviction reflected the gravity of his actions.

He said: "The actions of Macpherson in travelling at such high speeds on a rural Highland road had a devastating outcome and left a scene of death and destruction.

"The consequence of his driving has left two of his passengers without their mother and grandmother and the mental trauma they suffered in this collision will remain with them forever."

Ms Paterson, deputy matron in a nursing home, had collected the Peugeot 406 from a garage in Inverness.

That night, after dinner, Macpherson took the car for a drive with Mrs McGarvie in the front passenger seat and his partner sitting behind him with the two girls.

The court had heard the scene resembled an air crash

They drove along the B9163 Balblair to Culbokie road for a time, before they turned and headed back towards their then home in Balblair.

Part of the route was a long, straight section of road ending in a hump-backed bridge with stone parapets.

Although the speed limit was 60mph MacPherson began to accelerate along the straight.

The court heard that the 10-year-old girl said later that the speed of the vehicle was such that she could see nothing but "a blur" outside.

The 15-year-old said she could see the speedometer read 130mph before Macpherson lost control of the car.

His lawyers disputed this, saying the car was not capable of such a speed. Accident investigators estimated it was travelling at about 90mph when it hit the bridge.

The smash brought neighbours to the scene, including nurse Evelyn Forbes who found that Ms Paterson was dead.

Mrs McGarvie suffered a serious head injury and died two days later in Raigmore Hospital in Inverness.

The older of the two girls suffered a badly smashed arm and broken leg, while the younger had her ankle broken.