A Scottish teen, who killed three of his friends in a high-speed fatal car crash in 2022 has been sentenced to prison.
Videos by Suggest
Jay Loy, the 19-year-old driver, was sentenced to four years and eight months in prison after he pleaded guilty at Glasgow’s High Court to killing his friends in the devastating crash.
Finlay Johns, Ian Cannon, and Tyler Johnston, all 16 years old at the time, were passengers in Loy’s Honda Civic. Loy, then 17, collided with a Honda CR-V going in the opposite direction on a country road shortly after midnight near Dumfries.
The impact caused his vehicle to split into two. Johns, Cannon, and Johnston were pronounced dead at the scene. The teen driver was “seriously injured” in the car crash. Those in the second vehicle were injured as well.
At the time, it was reported that Loy was believed to be driving over the road speed limit of 60mph. During his trial, Loy pleaded guilty to causing death and serious injury by dangerous driving.
During the trial, a message on Snapchat reealed that Cannon was “scared” Loy’s driving before the crash.
“He was saying that he was scared because Jake Loy was swerving all over the place,” the court heard. “That he was a terrible driver and he was flooring it.”
Along with the prison sentence, Loy is now banned from driving for eight years. He will have to pass a driving test before he can obtain his license again.
Families of the Car Crash Victims Speak During Teen Driver’s Sentencing
Following the sentencing, the families of the car crash victims spoke out.
BBC reports that Johns’ brother, Grant, stated that no sentence could ever be enough after what his family lost. “He’s taken away our bother, he’s ruined our family,” Grant stated. “He ripped our family to pieces.”
Johns’ father, Alan, also told reporters following the sentencing that was was “very lenient.”
“There are no winners,” he said. “The sentencing is what we expected.”
Meanwhile, Donald Findlay KC, who defended Loy, stated the teen had “no recollection” of the car crash. This was due to a head injury he sustained during the horrific accident. “It was very telling and quite moving when he said if he could take their place he would,” Findlay said about his client. “He would rather it had been him.”
Finlay pointed out that there was “very clear and strong evidence” Loy had survivor’s guilt.
Judge Lord Harrower stated in a statement to Loy, “Not only were you unqualified, you had no real familiarity with this car or its characteristics at speed or under adverse conditions.
“Your driving at the time of the collision formed part of a more prolonged and deliberate course of bad or aggressive driving with a disregard for the danger being caused to others. The victim impact statements all bear witness to the terrible devastation you caused to the lives of their family members of those you injured.”