Sheffield driver aggressively overtakes ‘devastated’ family killing mum and son in horror crash

A man said his life was “destroyed” as he watched his wife and son be fatally injured in a head-on crash in Sheffield.

Angela Boyack, 59, and her son Stephen, 22, were traveling home to South Shields on December 9 after a weekend in Derbyshire to celebrate their 60th birthday , when the Hyundai they were traveling in was hit by Joshua Hill’s BMW X5.

Mrs Boyack’s husband William and eldest son Alex were driving two cars behind when Hill, 27, tried to overtake an Audi in front of him as he drove south on the A632 near Span Carr , but did not have enough time to maneuver and skidded. crashing into Stephen’s car which he was driving north.

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In a statement read at Derby Crown Court when Hill was sentenced on Friday, Mr Boyack, who was married for 35 years, said his life and that of his son had been “destroyed”.

Prosecutor Laura Pitman told the court that Hill was driving at speeds of up to 72mph on a 50mph stretch of road in wet weather and that his BMW’s anti-lock braking systems were faulty, which could have reduced the speed in point of impact if it had worked properly. He was seen making “aggressive” passes before the crash, with one driver reporting that Hill’s passenger rolled down his window, laughed and raised the middle finger as they passed him.

Mrs Pitman said the route the boyars would have taken on their journey home, on the A1M, was blocked due to an accident, so they took an alternative route home on the A632 through Chesterfield. She told the court how William and Alex saw Stephen’s Hyundai “jump up” and roll onto a grass verge after the crash, with dashcam footage from their vehicle showing them both running towards the car to try to get them out of it.

Mr Boyack ran back to his car to try and find a fire extinguisher and something to break the window with, returning with a claw hammer and “knew his wife was dead” as soon as he saw her .

Mrs Pitman said: “While this was happening, William saw Mr Hill and his passenger following but did not offer any help. With a temper, he approached them and asked if they were in the BMW, but got no answer. He then saw the defendant drive off as the Hyundai caught fire.

Members of the public who stopped to help reported hearing one of them shout “run, run” as the pair fled the scene, “no doubt realizing the gravity of what had happened”, he Ms Pitman told the court.

While Ms Boyack died at the scene in the crash, Stephen was taken to Queen’s Medical Center in Nottingham and his loved ones were initially told he would survive his injuries, but he went into cardiac arrest and died shortly afterwards. Ms Pitman said: “(Hill) chose not to call for assistance or try to speak to the police or emergency services. He chose to hide from the police and did not contact them to explain that he was the driver, but left the area and went to Sheffield.

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“He effectively fled and the police went to many addresses of people associated with the defendant in the hope that he would surrender.”

Hill was eventually arrested at his mother’s address in Sheffield after police threatened to force entry and admitted during interview that he was the driver. He told officers he “thought he had enough time” to overtake the vehicle in front of him, but Stephen Boyack’s car was “clearly” closer than he realized.

Hill initially pleaded not guilty to two counts of causing death by dangerous driving, but changed his plea to guilty on May 10, three weeks before a trial was due to begin.

Mitigating, Hill’s barrister Simon Eckersley said the defendant was “genuinely remorseful”. In his statement, Mr Boyack said he had “nothing by way of disgust and contempt” for Hill and his passenger, who “sat there and did nothing” as total strangers helped his wife, who worked in a library, and on his youngest son.

He said: “I can’t even begin to understand what happened that day, I get excruciating pain in my chest just thinking about it. Losing my wife and son has destroyed my life in every way. She was a caring, loving wife and loving mother. She was everything to me.

“But not only did I lose my wife, I also lost my giant, gentle son, Stephen. It was compounded by the fact that he was alive and we were told he would survive. We talked about getting him back and what we were going to do to make that happen. I had to watch him lose to his injuries.”

Ordering Hill to serve two-thirds of the 13-year sentence before being released on licence, and banning him from driving for 10 years, Judge Jonathan Straw said Hill had been playing “car Russian roulette” when he overtook the Audi.

He said: “Angela’s 60th birthday would have been December 12, the same day you first appeared in court charged with her and her son’s deaths.”