A carer accused of causing a crash that rolled her car into a ditch has celebrated outside a court, which cleared her of a dangerous driving charge.
Victoria Irvine emerged from Aberdeen Sheriff Court with her arms up in the air and her mouth wide open, after a jury returned a “not proven” verdict.
She’d been on trial following a collision between her red Seat Leon and a van, which caused her vehicle to spin off into a ditch at the side of the B9077 South Deeside Road, Durris.
Irvine, 27, had denied the charge against her and a jury of eight women and seven men later acquitted her of any wrongdoing.
Sheriff William Summers told Ms Irvine, who lives in Aberdeenshire: “These proceedings are now at an end. You are free to go”.
Delighted with the verdict, Ms Irvine, who works as a home carer, emerged from the court building celebrating in the street.
Serious injuries
Remarkably, only Gordon Fraser, Ms Irvine’s partner and a front-seat passenger, suffered serious injuries, including an “open fracture” to his right arm.
Ms Irvine and two other passengers, including a young child, escaped the wreckage unharmed.
Earlier in the trial, Ms Irvine took to the witness stand and told the court she had been trying to overtake the van when the incident happened.
During the crash, on April 20 2018, Ms Irvine’s car rolled into a ditch and was left a mangled wreck.
She said: “I mirror, signalled, manoeuvred, pulled out and it was like he took a right turn and went right into the side of me.
“I was onto the other carriageway on my way to pass the van and I just felt the impact.
“I did what I could to keep it straight but veered off the road.
“The steering wheel was going crazy.
“I got such a shock, it was so quick. There was no time for me to react or do anything.”
The Crown had alleged that the van pulled out before Ms Irvine, to overtake cyclists, and that she had crashed into the back of it.
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