Emma Hughes, a mother who lost her son Dafydd to a drunk driving accident, has shared her heartbreaking story and appealed to people to report illegal drivers. Dafydd, 18, died last year after his friend, who was both drunk and on drugs, crashed his Ford Focus into another car while driving on the wrong side of the road. Ricky Davies, the driver, was jailed for eight years, and had not only been drinking all day but had also been taking drugs. In her interview with the BBC, Emma stated that she could not forgive Davies for his actions. “But it wasn’t Dafydd’s choice for Ricky to drink all day, to speed or be on the wrong side of the road. I’ll never forgive Ricky for driving that day and in the state he was in,” she said.
Emma, who has six children, explained that Davies had spent the previous day out with Dafydd’s father, and then came to their home in Caerphilly county. However, when he found that Dafydd’s father was asleep, he instead went out with Dafydd. Though Dafydd’s grandfather Dai implored him not to go, Dafydd still went out with Davies and three other friends. None of the occupants in the car were wearing seatbelts, and no one survived the crash except the driver.
Dafydd, who had just turned 18 weeks earlier, was one of 220 people killed each year in the UK by drink-drivers. Emma hopes that by sharing her son’s story, others will learn from it and avoid the tragedy that her family has endured. She urges people to stay away from drivers who are intoxicated and not to waste their lives because, “in the blink of an eye everything can change”.
Investigations found Snapchat footage of Davies captured in the hours before the accident, drinking a can of cider while driving. He was also smoking cannabis. According to police investigators, Davies had been driving at about 50 mph when the crash happened, which was 10 mph above the speed limit. Davies, who had no driving licence or insurance, was jailed for eight years after admitting to causing death by dangerous driving, causing serious injury by dangerous driving, dangerous driving, driving under the influence of alcohol, and driving without insurance or a licence.
Emma wishes that Dafydd had stayed with her down the Rhymney Valley from Abertysswg. She believes that he would still be alive today if he had. Dafydd was a keen fisherman who never got to meet his youngest sibling, Jackson, who was born after his death. Emma describes her firstborn as a “ray of sunshine” and says that losing him has left a hole in her heart that will never be filled
Read the full article from The BBC here: Read More