A ‘SHOW OFF’ uninsured learner driver who seriously injured a pensioner after smashing into her going twice the speed limit has been jailed.

Grandmother-of-five Jean Gribble was flung into the air when she was struck by Akif Hussain’s Honda Civic as she crossed a busy main road.

Mrs Gribble, who was going to catch a bus, suffered a broken pelvis, a crack in her backbone, a fractured right leg, cracks to her sternum and ribs, nerve damage and other injuries.

She spent seven months in hospital, cannot now walk unaided and has had to have her home specially adapted.

Burnley Crown Court heard how Hussain, now 20, ploughed into the 74-year-old in Leeds Road, Nelson, just after midday, last September 5.

The hearing was told how charity worker Hussain, then a 19-year-old university student, had two friends in the vehicle, the windows wound down and loud music blaring out.

He accelerated away from traffic lights, with his engine revving and alarmed witnesses told police he had been driving in an ‘idiotic manner’ before the horrific collision.

The defendant had clocked up 59mph on the 30mph road when he slammed his brakes on, but lied to police about his speed and tried to blame Mrs Gribble for stepping out in front of him.

He later admitted he had ‘put his foot down’ and had been ‘an idiot’.

The defendant described hitting the victim as ‘like gunshot to the windscreen’.

Hussain, who had bought the £1,600, 1.4 litre vehicle two weeks before, was not supervised or displaying L- plates.

He was not insured and only had a provisional licence.

The defendant passed his driving test a fortnight after the incident, but, said his counsel, he had not been behind the wheel since.

The court heard Mrs Gribble had been an active and independent woman who enjoyed looking after her grandchildren and was a member of a walking group before the crash.

She was now unable to walk unaided, suffered depression, and was looked after by her family. The victim was undergoing physiotherapy and the best that could be hoped for was that eventually she would be able to walk with one stick.

Hussain, of Chatham Street, Nelson, admitted dangerous driving, inflicting grievous bodily harm, no insurance and driving otherwise than in accordance with a licence.

He was jailed for 18 months, ordered to pay £2,000, which he had saved up, in compensation to Mrs Gribble, banned for two years and must take an extended retest.

Amanda Johnson, prosecuting, said when Mrs Gribble stepped into the road, the defendant would have been 67 to 94 metres away from her.

If he had been travelling at 30mph, he would have had sufficient time to brake and would have been able to stop in half that distance.

Hussain when interviewed by police claimed he had been in second gear at the time of the collision and was doing between 30 and 40 mph.

The defendant said his driving was ‘normal with a bit of speeding’. Hussain had no previous convictions.

Nicholas Worsley, for Hussain, said he accepted his guilt unreservedly.

The barrister said: "He says that as soon as he stepped into the car, everything became his fault."

"He tells me that the matter goes through his mind again and again. It’s something he will never forget, can never forget and that it is his fault."

Mr Worsley said Hussain, who had suspended his second year as an IT student, volunteered for the British Heart Foundation and had worked with disabled children.

He told the court: "This is utterly out of character for him and he will live with the consequences. Of course, he can't even begin to imagine how the victim feels." Sentencing, Recorder Nicholas Clarke, QC, told Hussain: "I have no doubt that you were showing off to your two friends who were in the vehicle.

“The message needs to go out that cars are exceedingly dangerous weapons. When they are driven at speed, they became missiles. If people cause serious injury to other road users, than punishment must follow."