A drink and drug driver who crashed after driving dangerously has been spared an immediate prison sentence.
Sussex Police said: “Elliott Leonard-Diss drove in a reckless manner between Uckfield and Hailsham.
“He was recorded overtaking and undertaking in a prolonged period of poor driving.
“Eventually he lost control of a silver Mercedes and crashed into other vehicles.
Earlier this month at Brighton Crown Court, Recorder John Bate-Williams banned Leonard-Diss from driving for three years.
The court was told that Leonard-Diss, a property developer, of Street End Lane, Heathfield, was driving between 4am and 7am of Tuesday 28 May.
Police were called to a three-car collision on the A22 Uckfield bypass at about 7.15am.
Leonard-Diss had tried to undertake traffic using a layby but lost control of his car and ended up in a bush.
He was breath-tested for drink and given a roadside test for drugs and found to be over the limit for both alcohol and cocaine.
He had 81 micrograms of alcohol in 100 millilitres (ml) of breath. The legal limit is 35 micrograms.
In a separate blood test, he was found to have 82 micrograms of the chemical benzoylecgonine, a breakdown of cocaine, per litre of blood. The legal limit is 50 micrograms.
Investigating officer PC Jessica Crump said: “Leonard-Diss showed no regard for other road users and it is sheer luck that he didn’t cause a fatality that day.
“There is no place for drink or drug driving on our roads and anyone contemplating driving dangerously will be dealt with.
“We are grateful to so many people who came forward after our appeal for information about his driving that morning.
“We are pleased that a dangerous driver has been taken off our roads.”
Leonard-Diss was given a 14-month suspended prison sentence and made subject to a community order.
The judge ordered him to complete 200 hours of unpaid work and 20 rehabilitation sessions. He must also pay a £187 surcharge.
