Kyle Richardson: Drug-affected P-plater `off his chops’ after horror M1 smash

An 18-year-old suspended P-plater appeared “off his chops” after a high-speed crash, which badly injured his girlfriend, on the M1 motorway while severely impaired by drugs, a court has heard.

A suspended P-plater has been sentenced after a horror smash on the M1 motorway which left his girlfriend and only passenger with broken thigh bones, shattered ankles and other fractures.

Kyle Richardson was just 18 when he was seen overtaking other motorists “driving like a race car” on the M1 travelling an estimated 160km/h in a 90km/h zone before crashing into a rock wall shortly before 10am on May 4, 2020.

The court heard the force of the “catastrophic” collision caused the car to ricochet back into lane one and the front nearside wheel was “torn from the vehicle”.

“The engine of the vehicle was also torn from the supports and travelled across three lanes of traffic before coming to rest on the western shoulder,” an agreed set of facts state.

The car continued sliding out of control for another 155m.

Kyle Richardson was sentenced over the crash on the M1 which badly injured his girlfriend. Picture: Credit Facebook

Richardson’s then 18-year-old girlfriend was trapped in the wreckage of the blue Volkswagen hatchback before being taken to Royal North Shore Hospital with shattered ankles and mid-shaft femur fractures in both legs, which required the insertion of metal rods, and other fractures.

Gosford District Court on Friday heard witnesses who stopped to help following the collision were scared to approach Richardson who appeared “off his chops” on drugs.

He later called police “f-wits” and “gronks” when they arrived and subjected him to a roadside breath test.

Richardson, who at the time lived in Canton Beach, was taken to Gosford Hospital where drug tests and a forensic pharmacologist’s report found he was in the “toxic” range of impairment by MDMA and to a lesser extent cocaine.

Richardson was sentenced in Gosford District Court on Friday. (AAP Image/Sue Graham)

Richardson pleaded guilty to aggravated dangerous driving occasioning grievous bodily harm and driving while disqualified.

The court heard the now 20-year-old had driven about 65km from Toukley before the collision and was seen speeding and driving erratically for about 3km before the crash southbound at Mooney Mooney.

Judge Tanya Bright found while Richardson had no prior criminal record, was genuinely remorseful and unlikely to reoffend, his “moral culpability was of a very high order” and no other sentence other than full-time custody was appropriate.

“It is truly remarkable that no one was killed as a result of his irresponsible and reprehensible behaviour,” Judge Bright said.

Richardson was sentenced to two years an seven months jail with a non-parole period of one year and three months.

He was also disqualified from driving for three years.

With time already served Richardson will be eligible for release on November 4 this year.