Milton Keynes mum may have fallen asleep at wheel before fatal crash in which she and her 12-year-old twins died

A crash in which a mum and her 12-year-old twins were killed may have been caused by the woman falling asleep at the wheel, an inquest heard.
Jane Baker-Lockett and twins James and Amy Gaskin all died following the horror  crash last summerJane Baker-Lockett and twins James and Amy Gaskin all died following the horror  crash last summer
Jane Baker-Lockett and twins James and Amy Gaskin all died following the horror crash last summer

Jane Baker-Lockett, 43, and her children James and Amy Gaskin, from Milton Keynes, died in the crash in Devon, on July 31, last year.

The twins’ stepfather who was following her in a separate car witha her 14-year-old son, witnessed the crash.

The coroner told the hearing in Exterer yesterday (Oct 18) that the crash on the A362 near Barnstaple, could have been caused by the mother falling asleep or being distracted.

The hearing was told how Mrs Baker-Lockett had steered into the opposite lane of the road and collided head-on with a lorry .

The hearing came a day after another inquest heard how Keira Ball, nine, died in a crash on the same stretch of road the day before, on July 30, 2017.

Paul Lockett said the family had left their home in Milton Keynes at about 3pm to travel to north Devon for a family holiday. They had gone to bed early the previous night in preparation.

His wife and the twins were travelling behind him and his 14-year-old stepson in her white Kia Sportage.

The inquest was told she was driving at around 52-60pmh.

Mr Lockett said: “I watched as it slowly drifted out of out lane and into the opposite carriageway where it collided head-on with a large lorry.”

In a statement, the lorry driver, Adrian Kislingbury, decribed how he was driving at 49mph when he noticed Mrs Baker-Lockett’s car pull out from behind a red Vauxhall and into his lane.

He said the manoeuvre was “sudden” and looked like an attempt to overtake the Vauxhall.

He said he steered to the left and braked but there was a “huge impact and bang”.

He said he was “devastated” by what happened.

Philip Rowan-Smith, a forensic collision investigator, said there was no evidence Mrs Baker-Lockett steered or braked to try to avoid the collision.

He added there was also no evidence of alcohol, drugs, a medical event or defects with the vehicles being a factor.

Coroner Philip Spinney ruled all three died from multiple injuries as a result of a road traffic collision.

He said: “The absence of any physical evidence supports the possibility Mrs Baker-Lockett was suffering from sleepiness when the collision occurred.”