Drunk driver jailed for killing teenage passenger in 2023 Barham crash

A drink-driver who killed her teenage friend in a car crash has been jailed for more than three years.

Ellie Lambert from Barham in Suffolk will spend 40 months in prison and has also been disqualified from driving for six years and eight months.

The crash happened on Thornhill Road in the early hours of 29 April 2023, when Lambert lost control and her car left the road, hitting a tree, a garage and a fence before coming to a stop.

Her passenger and friend, 18-year-old Bethany McCauley, died at the scene.

Lambert had to be extracted from the vehicle and was taken to Ipswich Hospital having sustained serious injuries.

She was accompanied by a police officer in the back of the ambulance, who noted that she smelt of alcohol and was slurring her speech.

Tests revealed that the proportion of alcohol in her blood, 185 milligrams, was more than twice the legal limit of 80 milligrams per 100 millilitres of blood.

Lambert pleaded guilty to causing death by driving without due care and attention.

She told police she had no recollection of the collision, and forensic analysis of the crash site revealed she had made no attempt to brake.

In a tribute released at the time, Bethany's family described her as a "bright light who lit up their lives".

Det Con Kelly Dale said: “This was a tragic incident that has highlighted all too starkly how dangerous and devastating it is to drink and drive.

“Bethany was only 18 years old with her entire life ahead of her, but this was brought to an abrupt end as a result of Ellie Lambert’s actions that night.

"Those actions have also caused huge emotional turmoil for Bethany’s family, who continue to try to come to terms with her death.

“Lambert has shown remorse and clearly did not intend for what happened that night to take place. However, that is the risk you take if you get behind the wheel of a vehicle while more than two times the legal drink-drive limit."

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