Kelly Kennedy, 25, was driving home from work in her Ford Ka when a car driven by Liam Price, 23, smashed into her at high speed
A young woman was killed in a head-on collision when two drivers ‘raced side-by-side’ on a busy road at night, a court heard today.
Kelly Kennedy, 25, was driving home from work in her Ford Ka when a car driven by Liam Price, 23, smashed into her at high speed.
Price has previously pleaded guilty to causing her death by dangerous driving, but his co-accused, Cory Kedward, also 23, denies the same charge saying he was not racing or engaging in any kind of ‘competitive driving’ at the time of the fatal collision.
Swansea Crown Court heard how Miss Kennedy had finished work at 10pm and was travelling home down the A4067 Swansea Valley road on July 4, 2016.
Jim Davies, for the prosecution, said that around the same time Kedward and Price were exiting the roundabout at the Glais junction of the bypass, heading up the valley towards Pontardawe.
Kedward was in his black Vauxhall Astra SRi with his girlfriend beside him, while Price was driving his turquoise Honda Civic Sport with three passengers on board.
Mr Davies told the court: ‘They were side-by-side, travelling at high speed. They were, we say, racing.’
He said the passengers in Price’s car had ‘screamed’ at him to slow down and that Kedward’s Astra had also continued accelerating, effectively stopping Price from pulling over.
One of the passengers estimated the cars were travelling between 70mph and 90mph. The speed limit on the road is 60mph.
Miss Kennedy was driving within the speed limit, was wearing a seat belt, and the air bags in her Ford Ka deployed in the collision – but such was the force of the smash she was killed ‘instantaneously’
Miss Kennedy was killed as she drove home from work on the A4067 Swansea Valley road on July 4, 2016
The court heard when Miss Kennedy spotted Price’s car hurtling towards her in the darkness she braked and tried to swerve ‘to try to avoid the unavoidable.’
But the two cars ploughed into each other in the crash in July 2016.
Mr Davies said: ‘He deliberately accelerated to try to beat Liam Price, racing against him in effect.
‘And it was not just Liam Price driving dangerously. Cory Kedward was also driving dangerously, and is just as much to blame.’
Price has previously pleaded guilty to causing her death by dangerous driving, but his co-accused, Cory Kedward, also 23, (pictured) denies the same charge saying he was not racing or engaging in any kind of ‘competitive driving’ at the time of the fatal collision
The court heard Kedward drove on following the collision.
Around 20 minutes later his Astra was seen at the Pontardawe roundabout of the road – by that time police had already closed the bypass as the emergency services dealt with the smash.
The court heard an officer approached Kedward to explain why the road was shut but noticed he appeared ‘nervous’.
Kedward told the officer: ‘I knew something had happened…I heard a bang behind me.’
He said he’d carried on driving because he was ‘quite shocked’.
The court heard Kedward was arrested and put in a police car and taken to the station.
Miss Kennedy died at the scene of the smash on A4067 Swansea Valley road between Glais and Pontardawe in July 2016
But on the way he said: ‘I can’t believe I’m getting locked up when he was the one driving like a t*at.
‘I thought he was going to hit me. I didn’t see him driving alongside me.’
The court heard when Kedward arrived at the custody suite he told police: ‘He came up flying behind me. If I had slowed down he would have gone into me.’
Price pleaded guilty to causing her death by dangerous driving and will be sentenced after Kedward’s trial.
Kedward, of Penycae in the upper Swansea Valley, denies a charge of causing death by dangerous driving.
The trial continues.
Sorry we are not currently accepting comments on this article.