Death crash inspector 'twice drink-drive limit'
Keith Bridges, 52, downed wine and cocktails at a party before cramming seven family members and friends into his Jeep Cherokee to drive them less than a mile home.
He was almost twice the legal drink-drive limit and speeding along a French country lane when his car crashed and killed four of his eight passengers.
His children begged him not to drive them home after a boozy night with friends. But he overruled them before getting into the car and hitting a tree going around a bend on a quiet country road.
Andrew Dyer, 41, from Bridgwater, Somerset, his 10-year-old daughter Gabriella, Julie Bridges, 42, and her daughter Bethany Lowe, 10, all died in the crash in June 2006. Inspector Bridges, who worked for Avon and Somerset Police, escaped with a broken leg.
The group had been drinking heavily at the home of Anthony Fuller, another former police officer who lived in France near to the Bridges in the Berbiguieres area of the Dordogne region.
Mr Fuller told the Taunton inquest they had consumed around four bottles of wine, 22 small bottles of beer and at least a bottle of spirits in a cocktail mix.
Before leaving Mr Fuller's house, just before 11pm, Mr and Mrs Bridges agreed Mr Bridges would drive as Mrs Bridges had drunk too much. Mr Fuller told the hearing Bethany and Gabriella pleaded with the adults not to drive the 2km home after drinking alcohol.
He said tearfully: "They said all the adults had far too much to drink so we will drive. I said to them, you are not tall enough or old enough. They said one of us will steer and the other squat down and press the pedals."
Mrs Dyer suffered multiple fractures and severe head injuries in the crash and was in intensive care for weeks. Her four-year-old son Kieron along with Charlotte survived with serious injuries.
A few hours after the crash, Mr Bridges, who was months away from retiring as an inspector in Minehead, was given a blood alcohol test.
He was found to have 150 milligrams of alcohol in 100 millilitres of blood, which is three times the French drink-drive limit and almost twice the UK limit.
The inquest was told that on the fatal bend, French police estimated Mr Bridges' speed at around 101kmh, or around 62mph – more than the advisable limit of 70kmh, or 43mph.
Mr Bridges said in his statement he believed the Jeep had a fault with the overdrive transmission system, causing the car to over-accelerate.
A report by French police read to the court concluded that examinations of the car revealed there were no mechanical failings.
A letter from Mr Bridges, who did not attend the inquest, written by his solicitor to the court, maintained there had been reports of this kind of failing in that model of car.
Mr Dyer's wife Tracey also gave evidence yesterday and said that she felt comfortable with Mr Bridges driving.
"I did not have a problem with Keith driving. I did not doubt it at all that he could drive home," she said.
"I did not question his driving at all at the time and I still do not question his ability to drive home that night.
"When we left the house, the journey was very civilised, nothing out of the ordinary.
"The car just took off, it was like it was going faster and faster and wouldn't slow down."
The jury, sitting at the Shire Hall in Taunton, decided that the failure of the overdrive system was unlikely and that the cause of the accident was alcohol consumption and excessive speed.
It returned a narrative verdict which said: "The accident would not have occurred if the driver of the vehicle had not attempted to negotiate a bend at an excessive speed and his judgment moderately impaired by alcohol."
Mr Bridges is due to appear before Bergerac Courts of Justice in France next month to faces charges of involuntary manslaughter while driving a car under the influence of alcohol and driving at excessive speed.
He is also charged with offences of causing injuries while driving a car under the influence of alcohol.
Coroner Michael Rose offered his sympathies to the families involved.
He said: "I have sat here for over 14 years and I have never had a road accident with so many deaths.
"If there are any lessons to be learned from this, it is that the risk of driving with any alcohol is dangerous. You may think that you are going a small distance but I do urge people not to drink any more than the limit allowed by law because it may lead to tragic consequences."
After the inquest, Mrs Dyer, from Bridgwater, said she did not want to discuss the case because of the legal proceedings against Mr Bridges in France.
But she added: "I have always stuck by Keith and I will continue to stick by him."
Mr Dyer's family said they were pleased with the verdict that alcohol and speed was a factor in the crash.
Mary Dyer, Mr Dyer's mother, also from Bridgwater, said: "We are happy that the truth has now come out and he (Mr Bridges) has to live with it.
"I am pleased with the verdict. Now that I know the truth, we can move on."
