Drug driver who used car as weapon to crush Rebecca Steer, 22, to death after mounting pavement is jailed
A DRUG driver who used his car as a “weapon” to crush a young woman to death after mounting the pavement has been jailed.
Stephen McHugh, 28, ploughed into 22-year-old Rebecca Steer outside the Grill Out takeaway in Oswestry, Shropshire.
She was dragged under his gold Volvo and crushed to death after at least one of the car’s wheels drove over her.
Tragically Rebecca couldn’t be saved after suffering rib fractures and catastrophic internal injuries.
McHugh has today been jailed for life with a minimum of 18 years at Stafford Crown Court.
The killer yesterday stormed out of the dock and branded jurors “pieces of s**t” as he was found guilty of murder.
McHugh was also convicted of injuring Kyle Roberts in the horror in October last year.
The court heard McHugh had no driving licence and had been drinking heavily and was high on cocaine at the time of the horror.
He was close to the restaurant when he began treating pedestrians “like they were human skittles” after words were exchanged about his erratic driving.
At the same time, innocent bystander Rebecca was crossing the road when the Volvo “shot backwards” and narrowly missed her.
She managed to get out of the way and instead made her way to the pavement on the opposite side.
Prosecutor Kevin Hegarty KC said: “At that moment Mr McHugh turned the steering wheel in the direction of the people on the pavement and then he drove on to the pavement towards that group of people.
“The driver’s side of the car went on to the kerb, on to the footpath, and he proceeded to drive through the group.
“We say he used his car as a weapon – he used the power and the weight of the car to strike the group.”
Jurors heard two men were “knocked aside” by the bonnet while Rebecca was dragged under as McHugh sped up.
Harrowing CCTV revealed she had “no chance to get away” as the car was aimed at the crowd.
Mr Hegarty said: “The car then went over her – which is to say one or more of the wheels went over her.
“She was crushed – in effect she was left with rib fractures and catastrophic internal injuries.”
McHugh had been out at a local football game that afternoon before visiting two pubs and a nightclub.
He was arrested two days later and claimed he “didn’t mean to hit anyone”.
Mr Hegarty said: “This is not a collision where a pedestrian is thrown some distance by an impact.
“Stephen McHugh has gone from a standing start up onto the pavement and through the people there, and took Rebecca Steer with him.
“What else could he have had in mind for people in that group other than to cause, at the very least, really serious harm? If that is proved, that is murder.”
McHugh admitted manslaughter but denied murdering Rebecca.
He also pleaded guilty to assault causing injury to Kyle Roberts but has denied attempting to cause him grievous bodily harm with intent.
Speaking after the verdict, Rebecca’s family branded McHugh a “maggot”.
They added: “Rebecca Adelaide Steer, Becca to us, Becky to everyone else was a pure joy to have as a daughter/sister and we all feel lucky to have had her in our lives, but we will always feel robbed.
“So many people have said how they feel so sorry for us and that is only natural, and we are totally humbled by it, but the person people should be feeling sorry for is not us at all, it’s Becca.
“We all get to live a life, but through no fault of her own whatsoever, her life was taken from her by a few seconds of someone else’s stupidity.
“Her 13-year-old sister Kimberley summed it up perfectly in her letter to Becca at her funeral, she said: ‘Becca was doing so well in life, and some stupid idiot stole her away from us’.
“Becca was and always will be 22 in our hearts and beautiful and amazing.
“McHugh is, and always will be, a maggot to us.”