“You drove like an arrogant young racer,” the judge says to the American who fled Great Britain after a crash

He failed to appear at Kidderminster District Court in November 2023 and a warrant was issued for his arrest in December but he had already flown back to Texas.

Court documents filed in Texas earlier in 2024 showed that Calderon admitted during a police interview that he was unfamiliar with using a manual transmission, did not understand British road signs and that he was driving “absolutely not safely.”

He later asked police to tell the nurse that he was “really sorry” and also admitted that he had vaped in the car before the crash.

The judge, who also banned Calderon from driving for two years after his release, told him: ‘You had not had a driving license for more than a year.

“So you were at least an inexperienced driver. You hadn’t really bothered to familiarize yourself with the solid white lines and what they mean, what they are for.

“Although you say you did ‘follow the leader’, the responsibility for this accident lies solely with you.

“It was your hands on the wheel. It was your foot on the accelerator and it was your mind that decided to perform those dangerous maneuvers.

“It is disturbing that, instead of going to that first (magistrates’ court) date, you chose to return to America rather than face the music.

“Other people were clearly aware of the road conditions and drove safely. You chose to do the opposite.”

Mrs Donowho, 56, who was on her way home from work at a hospital ward in Hereford, suffered multiple fractures in the collision, including both ankles, her sternum and her right hand.

Calderon suffered a broken arm and a concussion while the nurse has yet to return to work.

The accident, which took place on a wet road in an 80 km/h speed limit, was recorded by front and rear cameras mounted on a van.

Simon Phillips, prosecuting, told the court that a witness estimated Calderon’s speed at around 70mph and feared he was “going to kill himself or someone else”.