Tyler Cornish, 22, from Poole, was sentenced at Bournemouth Crown Court on Friday 30 September 2022 to three years in prison after admitting causing serious injury by dangerous driving and two counts of drug driving.

Cornish was also disqualified from driving for three years, with the ban due to start once he has been released from prison.

The incident occurred in the early hours of 21 November 2021 when Cornish met with three acquaintances in Bournemouth town centre and offered to drive them to Poole.

Cornish was reportedly driving erratically and his passengers asked him to slow down before his car failed to negotiate the Tower Park Roundabout and collided with the central reservation at around 5am.

Cornish and two of his passengers sustained minor injuries. A third passenger, a woman who was 18 years old, was taken to hospital for treatment to injuries that were believed to be life threatening.

She sustained multiple fractures to her spine, fractures to her skull, a bleed on the brain, a fractured jaw, fractured ribs and bruising to her lungs.

Cornish was arrested at the scene and a blood specimen was taken for analysis. It was found to contain cocaine at a presence of 32 micrograms per litre of blood (above the specific limit of 10 micrograms per litre of blood) and 800 micrograms of benzoylecgonine, a metabolite of cocaine, per litre of blood – the legal limit for benzoylecgonine is 50 micrograms per litre of blood.

Police Constable Craig Jeffery, of the traffic unit, said: “Tyler Cornish’s reckless decision to get behind the wheel while under the influence of drugs resulted in one of his passengers sustaining serious injuries that are likely to have a lasting impact.

“We see all too often the devastating consequences of motorists such as Cornish who drive while impaired through drink or drugs and we are determined to ensure those who pose a risk to themselves and other road users in this way are prosecuted and held to account.

“The message needs to get across that there is absolutely no excuse for driving while under the influence and we will take robust action against those who do so.”