Drink-Drug driver jailed for fatal crash near Reading
Bridgette Rooney from Arborfield had a mixture of alcohol, cocaine and prescription drugs in her blood at the time of the collision
Last updated 17th Jul 2023
A woman has been jailed for causing death by dangerous driving in Arborfield.
Bridgette Rooney, aged 38, of Eversley Road, Arborfield, was sentenced to five years and nine months’ imprisonment and disqualified from driving for seven years and 10 months in a hearing at Reading Crown Court.
She will also have to take an extended re-test at the conclusion of her disqualification.
On 26 July 2021, there was a collision on the A327 Reading Road, Arborfield, where a VW Golf, being driven by Rooney, collided with a Peugeot, which was being driven by Kieron Johnson.
Rooney was heavily intoxicated by a combination of drugs and alcohol when she crossed onto the wrong side of the road and collided head-on with the car being driven by Kieron.
The collision resulted in Kieron receiving serious injuries, and he was taken to the Royal Berkshire Hospital where tragically he lost his life.
Rooney was also taken to hospital and a sample of blood was taken, which was later analysed and found to contain a mixture of alcohol, cocaine and prescription medication.
Following an investigation, Rooney was charged on 15 November 2022.
Investigating officer Detective Constable Mark Dunne of the Serious Collision Investigation Unit said:
“I would firstly like to pay tribute to Kieron’s family and friends, who have shown tremendous patience while we investigated the tragic circumstances that led to his death.
“Rooney chose to drive a motor vehicle while heavily intoxicated through both alcohol and drugs, and the result of her actions were a tragic and needless loss of life.
“Driving while under the influence of drink or drugs is one of the Fatal Four, and this tragic case shows the consequences that can occur if you take that decision.
“Rooney will now serve a custodial sentence as a result of her actions, and although I know that no sentence will serve as solace to Kieron’s family, I hope that they are able to move on with their lives in the knowledge that she has been brought to justice.”
The partner of Kieron Johnson, Diana, said:
“Kieron was my best friend and soulmate. When he died my heart and the children’s hearts all broke, and our lives have never been the same since. Kieron was everything to me and to lose him in such an awful tragic way, is something we will all, never get over.
“Kieron was one of the kindest, caring and strongest men that I have ever known. He would go out of his way to help anyone who needed help, without any reward and always put others before himself. He touched so many people with his kindness, that the world is now a darker place without him in it.
“He loved his family more than life and would have done anything for us. We will all sadly miss Kieron, as we were planning to tell the children after Christmas that we were going to get remarried.
“However, this was so tragically taken away from us and is something we should never have had to endure.
“Not having Kieron around anymore, has left a massive hole and void in all our hearts which will never be filled or repaired. Kieron was truly loved and is irreplaceable. He was one of a kind and he will be missed more than any words can ever explain.
“My family will never be the same and we will never get over losing him in such an awful, tragic way.”