Zack Mason, an unaccompanied learner driver, was over the legal cannabis limit when he struck 85-year-old Thomas Noel Crowley in Port Talbot.
The tragic incident happened on Water Street in Sandfields at around 5.45pm on Saturday, December 7, 2024.
Mr Crowley, a former leader of Neath Port Talbot Council, was crossing the road when he was hit by Mason’s blue Skoda Fabia.
He was rushed to the University Hospital of Wales in Cardiff with severe head injuries, a fractured rib, and a fractured pelvis.
Sadly, Mr Crowley, described as a “much loved and much respected” man, died three days later on December 10.
Swansea Crown Court heard that Mason, then aged 20, had pulled out of the Blanco’s hotel car park where he worked and driven just 25 metres before the collision.
Prosecutor Hannah George stated that Mr Crowley was “established on the road crossing” and “there to be seen by vehicles using the road.”
Mason, now 22, was arrested at the scene. A blood test later revealed he had 2.3mg of cannabis in 100ml of blood, exceeding the legal limit of two.
In his police interview, Mason claimed a motorist had “flashed” him out of the car park, distracting him as he thanked them.
He admitted consuming cannabis two days prior and acknowledged it was a “stupid” mistake to drive unaccompanied on a provisional licence.
(Image: South Wales Police)
Mr Crowley’s family described him in a moving statement as a man of “fairness and compassion” and a “champion of social equality.”
Known as Noel, he was a well-known community stalwart and a devout Catholic who lived his entire life in Port Talbot.
He had been with his wife Anne for 70 years, and the court heard she now sleeps each night with the hat he was wearing when he was knocked down.
A bricklayer by trade, he rose to become deputy manager for American contracting company Hecketts at the local steelworks.
He was awarded a CBE by Queen Elizabeth II for his community service and was also a Deputy Lieutenant and Freeman of the Borough.
His family said he “greeted everyone with a smile, had a wonderful ability to make you laugh and was a great storyteller.”
He was also a key carer for his grandson Sam, who has autism, and was “missed in every tiny detail of the day.”
Mason, of Lorraine Close, Sandfields, Port Talbot, pleaded guilty to causing death by careless driving while over the drug limit and driving without a licence.
The court heard his provisional licence had been revoked the previous year after he was caught driving without insurance.
David Singh, defending, said Mason took full responsibility and had stopped using cannabis since the incident.
He argued it was not a case of speeding or mobile phone use, but Mason had “clearly not been concentrating” with “devastating consequences.”
Judge Huw Rees said no sentence could mark the value of a life lost, describing Mr Crowley as “held in high esteem by all.”
PC Luis Tobenas from South Wales Police said: “Zack Mason took the decision to drive uninsured, without a licence and when he had recently consumed cannabis to a level exceeding the legal limit for driving. As a result, he cost Noel Crowley his life, and left his family and the wider community completely devastated.
“Mason will now have to live with what he has done for the rest of his life.
“Our thoughts remain with Mr. Crowley’s family, and we hope that this verdict gives them some comfort.”
Mason received a one-third discount for his guilty pleas and was sentenced to four years in prison.
He will serve half of the sentence in custody before being released on licence.
Mason has also been banned from driving for seven years and must pass an extended test to regain his licence.
