Plymouth minibus driver caused death of married father of four

A man is set to be sentenced after he admitted causing the death of a married father of four by driving without due care while unfit through drugs.

Stephen James William Saint, of Berkshire Drive, Plymouth pleaded guilty to causing the death of Ross Brown on August 25, 2022 at Kings Road by driving without due care and attention while benzoylecgonine - a metabolite of cocaine - was in his body in excess of the specified limit. The court heard that Saint was driving a Peugeot Boxer Minibus at the time of the collision.

Prosecutor Dan Pawson-Pounds revealed that Saint had a number of previous convictions which were "highly pertinent" for the sentencing hearing. He remarked that Saint had convictions for four offences of driving with benzoylecgonine in his body over the prescribed limit.

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He told the court that two of these convictions were for offences which took place before the fatal incident in August 2022 - namely one in 2019 and one in 2020.

However, he then explained that two of the convictions were for similar offences which took place after the death of Mr Brown, both in 2023, which he said the Crown would say was a "significant aggravating feature".

Judge Matthew Turner remarked there was also a previous custodial sentence handed to Saint in 2013 for an unrelated matter.

Previous reports by PlymouthLive noted how 45-year-old Mr Brown, from Ernesettle, had been on his way to work on the morning of August 25 when the incident unfolded in Kings Road, Stonehouse, close to City College Plymouth. The then assistant coroner Stephen Covell said that as Mr Brown was riding his motorbike "a second vehicle - a minibus - pulled out and the motorcycle collided with the wing of the minibus."

Judge Turner told Saint, 63, a provisional sentencing hearing would be listed for December 20 to allow for a pre-sentence report to be carried out.

He granted Saint unconditional bail but warned him "be under no illusion that the nature of the sentence which will be imposed in this case will be one of immediate custody and must inevitably be of some length given your previous convictions."

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