Drug driver Ian Short jailed over Glasgow death crash

A drug driver who knocked down and killed a 76-year-old man in north Glasgow has been jailed for two years.

Ian Short, 47, had taken a cocktail of drugs and argued with his girlfriend before his car hit Kenneth Craig on Hillhead Road, near Robroyston.

The pensioner was found in undergrowth a short time later and died at the scene on 26 October 2012.

Short was jailed after he admitted causing death by careless driving while under the influence of drugs.

Jailing him at Glasgow Sheriff Court, Sheriff Anthony Deutsch told Short: "This is an offence of considerable gravity, you know that.

"You drove while under the influence of drugs, that's a major aggravation, there are also other matters that I must take account of.

"The fact you were in a highly emotional state and had not been sleeping, possibly shouldn't have been driving while drugs were within your system or otherwise."

The court was told that on the morning of the crash, Short went to his girlfriend's house in Bishopbriggs but left after they argued.

At about 11:30 Mr Craig left his house with his wife Joyce, although she returned for her scarf.

Witnesses Eileen Ritchie and her son Brian described how Short's car was travelling south on Hillhead Road when it collided with the metal railing fencing at the pedestrian crossing island.

It continued off the road and hit another fence, then tipped onto its side before coming to rest among trees.

Mrs Craig arrived later to see her husband being attended to by paramedics. He was pronounced dead at 11:50.

A post-mortem examination revealed he had suffered severe head, chest and abdominal injuries.

While Short was being treated, he claimed an "old guy stepped into the road" - a claim not backed up by any witnesses.

The court also heard his eyes were glazed and his behaviour was erratic.

A toxicology report showed that traces of diazepam, desmethyliazepam, methylone and MDPV were found in his blood.

The report said: "The combination of diazepam, methylone and MDPV have the potential to impair driving."

The court heard methylone is a stimulant and resembles ecstasy but is a third less potent.

MDPV can cause blurred vision and driving could be "further impaired" by altered perceptions, hallucination, dizziness and difficulty focusing.