Drink and drug driver jailed for death crash for five years

A drink and drug driver has been jailed for five years after a woman died when he crashed into her car after he had had about twice as much alcohol as permitted.

Shaun Mulligan, 48, a scaffolder and former soldier who grew up in Brighton, was at the wheel of a Renault Master dropside work van when he lost control.

He crashed head on into a Suzuki Jimny driven by Jennifer Allen, 71, known as Jen or Jenny, a farmer and countrywoman, of Blackstone, in Woodmancote, near Henfield.

She died at the scene on the A281 Brighton Road, in Woodmancote, about a mile from her home, in November 2022.

At Lewes Crown Court today (Friday 25 October), Dale Sullivan, prosecuting, said that Mulligan had also taken cocaine at some point before getting behind the wheel.

Mulligan pleaded guilty to causing Jen Allen’s death by careless driving while over the limit for both alcohol and cocaine.

Mr Sullivan said that people at the crash scene said that Mulligan had smelt of alcohol – and three vodka bottles were found in and around his van.

Mulligan was heading towards Henfield from Shaves Thatch when he crashed and the prosecutor told the court: “The defendant said that he had had one beer at lunch with his mother.”

Mr Sullivan said that the crash and Miss Allen’s death were caused by Mulligan’s driving, “impaired by alcohol and cocaine”.

Mulligan was driving fast – 60mph on a winding stretch of road with a 40mph speed limit – and the prosecutor added: “Miss Allen was left with no time to take avoiding action.”

“There is no evidence that the Miss Allen’s driving contributed to the collision.

Mulligan told police: “I’m not drunk. I’m not drugged. It was a tragic accident. There was water on the road. I just aquaplaned.”

But the prosecutor said: “It was not raining and visibility was generally good. There was no surface water. Neither vehicle had any faults.”

Mulligan later admitted to police that he had two to three cans of lager and shots of sambuca the night before and no breakfast the next day.

Mr Sullivan said that Mulligan had “a large glug of vodka” before leaving his mum and, after stopping for a bite to eat in Holllingbury, he had another large glug of vodka.

Since the crash, the court was told that he and his long-term girlfriend had broken up and Mulligan had become homeless. He had moved into a temporary home in Seaside, Eastbourne.

His barrister, Tayo Adebayo, said in mitigation that he had suffered injuries that left him unable to work – a fractured spine, broken ribs and muscle torn away from his spine.

He had been to hospital A&E (accident and emergency) departments 45 times in 18 months and suffered 36 seizures resulting from alcohol withdrawal. He had also been denied access to his son.

Mr Adebayo said: “He has had a high level of anxiety and flashbacks. He has accepted that he has an alcohol problem.

“Alcohol is at the heart of his downward spiral and he is trying to tackle what is an addiction.”

Mr Adebayo told the court: “Alcohol has been a problem for him since his father died in 2021 from lung cancer. He found it difficult to deal with and he turned drink as a coping mechanism.”

As well as having worked as a scaffolder, Mulligan had previously been a plasterer and, after leaving Falmer High School, he spent three years in the Army.

Mr Adebayo quoted a reference from a member of staff at the recovery charity CGL (Change Grow Live) who said: “Mr Mulligan is a good person who has just lost his way in life after losing his father.”

The court also heard a statement from Josephine Allen, Jen Allen’s 100-year-old mother. She said: “My daughter was a kind person and thoughtful … and helpful to everybody. Jen was so kind to me and was my life really.

“So many people were better for having Jenny in their lives. Jenny was wonderful as a daughter.”

She was in good general health and, her mother said, “she was as bright as a button.”

Jen Allen’s sister-in-law Gaye Allen said that her life was ended Mulligan’s “selfish and reckless behaviour” and contrasted his actions with those of a woman who had cared for and supported her late father in his final years.

Judge Christine Laing, the honorary recorder of Brighton and Hove, said: “Jennifer Allen … was undoubtedly a much-loved daughter, sister and aunt.”

Judge Laing told Mulligan: “People’s lives were always better for her being in them. Her life was cut short by you. The loss to her family and friends is immeasurable.”

The judge said that no sentence could make up for their loss, adding: “You knew you had been drinking and taking drugs.

“You should never have been behind the wheel of that vehicle They are killing machines if not handled properly.”

Judge Laing said Mulligan had been driving in a manner that was inappropriate and unsuitable for the road conditions and she jailed him for five years.

The sentence would have been longer but Mulligan, who had shown remorse and had been trying to tackle his drink problem, had entered an early guilty plea.

Judge Laing banned him from driving for seven and a half years and, turning to the family of Jenny Allen, said: “The court extends to you its deepest sympathies.”

After the case, Jenny Allen’s family said: “It is extremely difficult to convey the grief, the enormous sense of loss and the life-changing turmoil caused when Jenny’s life was brutally ended by the selfish and reckless behaviour of a man who clearly had no concept of duty or responsibility whatsoever.

“So many people were better for having Jenny in their lives and we feel very fortunate to have benefited from her kind and gentle nature and we miss her every day.”

Detective Sergeant Ian Foxton, from the Serious Collision Investigation Unit, said: “Yet again this is another case that demonstrates the devastating consequences of drink and drug driving.

“Witnesses and footage showed Mulligan’s poor driving. He posed a serious risk not just to his own safety but to every other road user.

“Tragically, this was evidenced when he lost control of his vehicle and caused a head-on collision.

“The fact Mulligan still thought he would be ok to drive, despite consuming vodka, is shocking.

“Our work to catch drink and drug drivers before they cause such harm to themselves and others continues.”