A DRIVER who pulled out in front of an oncoming car and caused a crash which killed his sister has been spared jail.

John Bond, 31, was behind the wheel of a van when he failed to stop at a junction and rolled into the path of a Mercedes.

One of his passengers, 22-year-old sister Mischa Bond, died of head injuries as a result of the crash.

Bond had traces of cocaine and cannabis in his system at the time of the smash, and was more than double the limit of a cocaine derivative but had not taken the Class A drug for several hours and the metabolite is not thought to cause impairment to driving.

At a previous hearing, he admitted causing death by careless driving while under the influence of drugs.

During sentencing at Chelmsford Crown Court today, Judge Patricia Lynch QC said Bond would always have to live with what happened on the night of the smash, which took place between Mill Lane and Witham Road in Tolleshunt Major in January last year, and handed him a two year jail term suspended for two years.

She said: “I’m doing this because of a very particular set of circumstances.

“You should not think this court condones in any way behaviour like this.

“It is young people like yourself who think they can smoke a spliff, take drugs and continue driving. You cannot.

“This is the worst thing that can happen.

“The punishment and deterrent here is you have to live with this for the rest of your life.”

Bond, of Perry Road, Tiptree, was also disqualified from driving for two years.

Matthew Morgan, mitigating said: “The most important mitigating factor is as a result of Mr Bond’s own actions his beloved younger sister died.

“He can never take that back and must live with it forever and is arguably the greatest punishment he faces.”

Mr Morgan said although the family had been left devastated by Mischa’s death, they continued to support Bond and family members cheered with relief when the sentencing was read out.

Speaking after the crash, devastated friend Jessica Dawkins, who had known Miss Bond since they started at Thurstable School, said: “Mischa was an absolutely amazing person – a real free spirit.

“She was just the most amazing, caring person ever.

“Nobody can believe something like this has happened – I hope she is always with us.”

Miss Dawkins said: “She loved her family so much.

“She also absolutely loved her little dogs – they were Chihuahuas.

“Mischa was always the life and soul of the party and was always making everybody giggle with her funny laugh.”

Miss Bond had been working as a carer at Park View care home in Kings Chase, Witham, for about six months before her death.