An angry driver who deliberately drove into an oncoming car near Stover during an argument with his girlfriend has been jailed.
Christopher Miller swerved onto the wrong side of the road in his Renault Laguna in an attempt to terrify his passenger and drove straight into a horrified motorist coming the other way.
Innocent victim Katie White tried to veer out of the way but there was a hedge on her nearside and she had no way of avoiding the head-on crash in which she and her 12-year-old daughter were injured.
Miller escaped unhurt but his girlfriend Katherine Kpabitey and her daughter who was in the back seat both suffered bruising from their seatbelts.
Businessman Miller lost his temper during a petty family argument during the trip to an air cadet meeting in Newton Abbot, Devon, and carried out the ramming manoeuvre as they drove back to their home at nearby Bovey Tracey.
Miller, aged 48, now of Harrowbarrow, near Callington, Cornwall, admitted dangerous driving and was jailed for six months and banned from driving for 15 months by Recorder Mr Jonathan Barnes at Exeter Crown Court.
He told him: ‘You completely lost your temper. I have seen the damage to the vehicles and it is a miracle that no more serious injury was caused.
‘Whatever your mental condition, it was no excuse for what you did. The fact is that you lost your temper and intentionally drove in a very dangerous way. This is a very bad case of dangerous driving.’
Miss Caroline Bolt, prosecuting, said Miller gave Ms Kpabitey and her daughter a lift to air cadets on January 22 this year but an argument started once they had got there.
It continued in the car on the way home and led him to start driving on the wrong side of the road on the A 382 at Stover.
Miss Bolt said: ‘He swerved onto the wrong side of the road to try to scare his partner but instead of swerving back, he continued driving with no attempt to brake at around 30 to 40 mph, colliding with a car coming in the opposite direction.
‘The other driver tried to avoid the collision but was unable to do so because of a hedge. We say the offence was aggravated by the deliberate nature of the driving and the likely consequences.’
Ms Kpabitey, who was pregnant with Miller’s child, her daughter, and Mrs White and her 12-year-old daughter all needed treatment for injuries.
Mr Martin Salloway, defending, said Miller runs his own business and is being supported by Ms Kpabitey despite this incident. He said he has mental health issues which are being addressed since the crash.
He said: ‘His explanation is that he was trying to scare himself and was committed when he was agitated during a heated argument.’