College lecturer who killed couple in drink-drive crash jailed for six years

A former college lecturer who admitted killing a husband and wife in a head-on crash after drinking at a work Christmas party has been jailed for six years.

Sophie Hynd caused the deaths of Jatinder Kaur, 48, and her husband, Satwant Singh, 64, in Cluny in Fife last year.

The 33-year-old, who lost her job as a computer animation lecturer at Fife College in Kirkcaldy, had been drinking on-and-off for nine hours before the incident.

Hynd pled guilty to the offence at a hearing last month and was also banned from driving for 10 years during sentencing at the High Court in Edinburgh.

Judge Michael O'Grady KC said her decision to drive while over the limit had "dreadful consequences".

He said it was clear she "utterly regretted" her actions, but that she would have to live with the shame and guilt of her actions for the rest of her life.

During the hearing in September, the court was told the crash happened following a Christmas lunch and drinks on the last day of the college term on 19 December.

The court heard Hynd had been drinking a number of alcoholic beverages, including cider, prosecco, and possibly a Guinness shot, starting at about 13:30.

Hynd and colleagues then moved on to another bar at about 20:30. One witness described Hynd as "pretty drunk".

Colleagues later walked her home to her flat in Kirkcaldy at about 22:30.

However, once she returned home, she announced she was "going to see her boyfriend" and began driving her Nissan Qashqai.

A number of drivers called 999 after seeing the vehicle moving erratically and swerving into the opposite carriageway a short time later.

Kaur and Singh, her husband, were making deliveries to customers of the Keystone grocery store they owned in Kirkcaldy at the time of the crash.

Their 19-year-old daughter, Parveet, was in the front passenger seat when they saw Hynd's vehicle coming towards them in the middle of the road.

The court heard both vehicles crashed "head-on" with other drivers stopping to help, before emergency crews arrived.

Kaur was pronounced dead at the scene and Singh was taken to hospital but died two days later on 21 December.

A 10-year-old boy was also injured in the incident.

Police at the scene found Hynd "smelled of alcohol" and appeared to be unaware she was involved in a collision.

She was arrested and charged in May this year.

In a statement, Kaur and Singh's family said it was "incredibly difficult to accept they won't be there to share important milestones in our lives".

They added: "We will miss them more than words can express."