Drink-driving barmaid, 22, killed her on-off boyfriend in a crash

A drink-driving barmaid, 22, killed her on-off boyfriend after she lost control of her car and crashed into the front of a wedding shop in Derbyshire last year.

Derby Crown Court heard how Lucy Pegler had downed multiple drinks in a short space of time before giving her boyfriend Kyle Shimwell, his cousin, and a female friend a lift home. 

Mr Shimwell, 21, who played football for Bakewell Town FC, had been out celebrating the news that he had been granted his gas engineers license.

As they drove, Mr Shimwell was 'hanging out of the window' in the front passenger seat 'in good spirits'.

But then, the Fiat 500 mounted the kerb and crashed into a bridal store.

Mr Shimwell died in the collision, which took place in the early hours of January 7, 2023. 

Pegler, the driver, was more than twice the drink-drive limit even two hours after the crash.

She pleaded guilty to causing death through careless driving and while unfit through drink.

In a victim impact statement, bravely read to the court by Mr Shimwell's father, Darren Gosling, he said: 'This needless waste of life was caused by a conscious decision made by someone else and that makes it all the more difficult to understand.'

Jailing her for four-and-a-half years, Judge Jonathan Straw said: 'In two pubs, you made a determined effort to get drunk, consuming pints from the bar and taking gulps from the glasses of others and all the time you intended to drive home. 

'You knew you were over the limit, you knew you were incapable of driving.

'You left the road at relatively low speed, but you left the road because you were so drunk and you could not steer around the corner in front of you. All of this could have been avoided.

'You could have walked home, you could have got a taxi home, there were a whole host of other things you could have done that did not involve getting in a car when you were as drunk as you were.'

Stefan Fox, prosecuting, said Pegler had joined Mr Shimwell at around 10.25pm on January 6, having finished her shift at the Red Lion pub, in Birchover. 

He said she had 'two pints and four mouthfuls of Kyle's rum and ginger ale' in the Joiners Arms in Bakewell in less than an hour.

They then moved on to the town's Queen's Arms, where she had 'one more pint, another five mouthfuls of Kyle's drink and a glass of red wine', before offering him, his cousin and a female friend a lift home.

They were travelling along King Street in the town, left the carriageway and collided with the front of a shop.

Mr Fox told the court: 'She swung around a roundabout, the female in the car said she thought it was more her 'showing off', rather than the alcohol. 

'Kyle opened the passenger side window and started hanging out of it and waving.

'She tried to negotiate a bend, but mounted a kerb and collided with a shop front called Brides of Bakewell. 

'She got out of the car, went around to the passenger side and pushed him back into the passenger seat.

'His cousin (who was in the car) said she said to him 'what should I do, should I drive off?' and he told her not to. She then said 'I'm over the limit, I've had too much to drive'.'

Mr Fox said the police arrived and she failed a roadside test and, even more than two hours after the collision, she was over twice the legal limit. 

He said in interview the defendant told officers she'd drank 'maybe two pints' and that Mr Shimwell hanging out of the passenger side window 'had distracted her'.

In a victim impact statement, Mr Gosling, Mr Shimwell's father, said: 'Having to drive past the place where it happened every day is a constant reminder.

'People tell me it will get better with time, but I am struggling to believe that and neither Lucy Pegler nor her family have tried to reach out to us in any way. 

'We can only take it from her lack of remorse that she is not sorry. Sometimes, I walk past Kyle's room and open the door, look in and hope to see him there but there is nothing.'

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Pegler, of East Bank, Winster, initially pleaded not guilty to causing the death of Mr Shimwell through dangerous driving when she appeared at Derby Crown Court on Monday, October 2, last year.

But shortly before her trial in August this year, she pleaded guilty to a lesser charge of causing death through careless driving and while unfit through drink.

Dan Scothern, mitigating, said: 'Two families have lost their children due to Miss Pegler's terrible decision that night. She had her whole life ahead of her and because of her terrible actions all of that has been taken away from her.'

As well as the jail term, the judge disqualified Pegler from driving for nine-and-a-half years.

Following his death, a spokesperson for his club said: 'Bakewell Town FC is devastated to learn of the passing of one of our own, Kyle Shimwell, at the young age of 21.

'BTFC will do all it can to support Kyle's family and plans are being put in place to ensure his memory lives on and that we make him proud. Our thoughts are with Kyle's family and friends at this difficult time.'

Mr Shimwell was described as a 'committed' player for the Bakewell Town Development Team, who had stepped up into the first team on many occasions. 

He started out at Bakewell Town in the under-sixes and continued his way through the ranks.