A mental health nurse could lose her job after she was caught on dashcam coming “within a split-second” of causing a head-on smash.
Filipina Cruickshank was filmed driving her Jaguar VX into the path of an oncoming car on the A93 Blairgowrie-Perth road.
The 50-year-old overtook a Volkswagen Taigo when it was unsafe, Perth Sheriff Court heard.
In hair-raising dashcam video her car is seen fishtailing out of control as she accelerates back into her lane, causing other drivers to slam on the brakes.
Cruickshank denied dangerous driving on the morning of July 4 last year and tried to blame the motorist she was overtaking for not slowing down.
She was found guilty after trial and banned from the road for a year.
Claims of erratic driving
Witness George McMaster, 42, told the court he had been driving to work through the rain at about 7.30pm.
He said he was aware of Cruickshank’s car behind him as he left Blairgowrie but said she was not driving aggressively.
Mr McMaster, who works at an Edinburgh-based hearing care company, said the speed limit was 60mph but he had slowed to between 40 and 50mph at a section prone to flooding and mudslides.
“The car overtook me on a short, straight section of road.
“I had to brake and pull into the side, and so did the oncoming traffic.
“All of this happened in the space of five seconds.”
When cross-examined by defence solicitor Mike Tavendale, Mr McMaster denied he had been driving erratically by speeding up and slowing down.
Giving evidence, Cruickshank, of Berrydale Road, complained about Mr McMaster’s driving.
“His speed was erratic.
“He was slowing, going fast and slowing.”
She said halfway through her overtake “his speed was still not reducing”, forcing her to speed up.
Cruickshank blamed her car’s “traction control” for veering from side to side when she returned to the correct lane.
Asked if she accepted she had made a misjudgement overtaking at this point in the road, she replied: “Yes, because of the other driver’s behaviour.”
She added: “I always look in my mirror and if I see someone overtaking I reduce my speed to make sure they pass safely.”
Cruickshank said she was not in a rush to get to work but added: “A lot of people were depending on me that day because of the nature of my job.”
Accused denied driving was ‘dangerous’
Fiscal depute Stuart Hamilton, prosecuting, said: “There was only one person whose driving was erratic in this case and that was the accused.”
He said Cruickshank increased her speed in the face of oncoming traffic, instead of pulling back.
“The fishtail is also a danger to other drivers,” he said.
Mr Tavendale said his client accepted she was careless but denied her driving was dangerous.
He said Mr McMaster should have slowed when he noticed Cruickshank was overtaking.
Sheriff William Gilchrist said: “I can’t believe that a driver should assume the car they are overtaking should do anything to assist them.”
He told Cruickshank: “This was within a split-second of being a head-on collision and if this had been a collision, there wouldn’t be any question whether the driving was dangerous or not.”
Cruickshank, of Berrydale Road, Blairgowrie, was fined £500 and disqualified for a year.
Mr Tavendale said as part of her nursing job she requires to visit patients outside of her workplace.
“This will have a considerable effect on her employment,” he said.
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