A DRINK-driver endangered the life of his two young children when he drove the wrong way down a dual carriageway and crashed into an oncoming vehicle, a court has heard.

Jason Williams pulled his daughters, one just eight months old, from his smashed up Range Rover following the crash on the A31.

The collision took place near Stoney Cross when the self-employed builder, who had been drinking at a wedding, mistakenly turned onto the wrong side of the dual carriageway.

He continued travelling eastbound on the westbound carriageway until crashing into an oncoming vehicle, heavily damaging both cars.

Williams failed to stop at the scene of the crash, driving his heavily-damaged car half a mile back down a slip road, before ditching it and calling his father to pick him up.

But when police caught up with him at his home in Dean Villas, Knowle, Williams claimed he had been car-jacked and denied being involved.

Unimpressed by his story, police arrested the 39-year-old, who later confessed to the crash.

He was breathalysed, four hours after the crash, and found to have 76 micrograms per 100 millilitres of breath – the legal limit being 35 micrograms.

On Monday, February 11, he was jailed for eight months after pleading guilty to dangerous driving.

The court heard how Williams, his wife and his two children attended a wedding reception at The Trusty Servant at Minstead on the day of the crash.

Prosecutor Dawn Hyland said Williams turned eastbound onto the westbound carriageway at the Minstead turn-off, heading in the direction of the M27.

He drove around a third of a mile before colliding with an oncoming black Vauxhall Astra.

Ms Hyland said the driver of the Vauxhall swerved the car into a nearby verge and "thought he was going to die".

She said: "In his statement he said that he didn't expect a car to be coming the other way on a dual carriageway.

"The driver said he went past the spot of the incident the other day and felt like the luckiest man alive."

Ms Hyland said the driver suffered small cuts to his face in the crash, but was otherwise unharmed.

In mitigation, Nicola Talbot-Hadley described her client as a "hardworking family man" who had shown remorse for his actions.

She said: "He feels extremely bad about the situation and knows he is fortunate that he did not cause someone's death that night."

Judge Peter Henry said Williams' actions warranted an immediate custodial sentence.

He said: "There was a significant risk of causing death or serious injury.

"It is aggravated further by the fact your wife and two very young children were in the car and the fact that you drove off after and the fact that you made up a lie."

Williams, who pleaded guilty to dangerous driving and drink-driving, was sentenced to 12 months, reduced to eight for his guilty plea.

He was also disqualified from driving for three years.