A man who deliberately caused a head-on crash during a row with his partner, leaving her seriously injured, later urged her to change her account of the incident to police.

In his rage while driving home from a camping trip, Bradley Smith, who had been drinking and taken cocaine through the preceding night, told her he would kill both of them.

He then steered his Fiat Ducato van onto the opposite carriageway, colliding with an oncoming car, on the A688 at Keverstone Bank, near Staindrop, County Durham, shortly before 9am on January 12, last year.

His partner was airlifted to hospital and put in a medically-induced coma because of the head injury she suffered but, in time, did make a recovery.

Read more: Fit of rage led to head-on collision on County Durham road

The female driver of the other vehicle, a Nissan Juke, spent two nights in hospital and suffered a fractured sternum, a liver lesion and bruising.

Durham Crown Court heard that in the aftermath of the crash police were treating it as potentially a case of attempted murder and considering a further charge of controlling or coercive behaviour within a relationship.

Smith, who was on remand in custody after the collision, rang his partner from prison asking her to contact the police to retract her statement over what took place on the lead up to the crash.

Dr Chris Wood, prosecuting, said within an hour she did so, while Smith later urged her to write to her solicitors to say there was no element of control within their relationship and to tell them she was drunk when she made her original statement.

She also followed his instructions to write to the solicitors.

Police investigated Smith’s actions and asked him about the contents of a letter he had written from prison, but he gave no answer.

The now 38-year-old defendant, who was living at Gregson Terrace, Seaham, at the time of the incident, went on to receive a 45-month prison sentence in June, last year, for offences of causing serious injury by dangerous driving and unlawful wounding, plus assaulting an emergency worker, having lashed out at a police officer attending the scene of the crash.

Read more: Dash cam appeal as Staindrop crash driver faces attempted murder charge

He appeared back at the court today, via video link from Holme House Prison, Stockton, where he is serving his sentence, and admitted a charge of doing an act tending or intended to pervert the course of justice.

Dr Wood said: “It was a woman with whom he had been in a relationship, who he instructed what to say and how to behave.

"She did carry out those instructions and it did have an impact on the case, as a result.”

Paul Abrahams, for Smith, said his earliest release date from the sentence imposed last year is December 1, and his client is aware his actions could jeopardise that.

But he added that Smith was, “a changed man” following the time spent behind bars since the collision.

Judge Ray Singh told Smith: “Even a remand in custody did not prevent you from contacting her and committing further offences, and you did on three occasions.

“The impact could have been even more significant.

“She did both things she was asked to, but it didn’t work, ultimately.

“It was all designed to thwart proceedings against you.”

Judge Singh imposed a further four-month sentence on Smith, to be served consecutively to his existing sentence.

* Read next: Man charged with attempted murder following Staindrop crash

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