A woman who caused the death of two Scottish scientists in a car crash has been warned she will have to live with the guilt for the rest of her life.
Elizabeth-Anne Dixon’s driving cost the lives of Dr Stewart Rhind and Dr Julian Dawson.
The 35-year-old failed to spot a fellow motorist when she joined the A90 from the central reservation of a staggered junction on the A90 Dundee to Aberdeen road, near Fordoun, on March 8 last year.
The driver of the other car was forced to swerve out of her way and skidded across the central reservation before colliding with an oncoming car carrying the researchers.
Both Dr Rhind and Dr Dawson were fatally injured in the accident two years ago.
The loss of their lives was described at the time as an “immense loss” to Scottish science.
At Aberdeen Sheriff Court, Dixon was spared a jail sentence after previously admitting causing their death by careless driving.
Sheriff Graham Buchanan told the mother-of-two that she was guilty of a “momentary lapse of attention” as she broke down in tears in court surrounded by the families of the two scientists.
He said: “The guilt you have will stay with you for the rest of your life. It is plain that you are a decent person who has good character. It would only add to this tragedy if your life and the lives of your two young children would be shattered by the imposition of a custodial sentence.”
Dixon was ordered to carry out 250 hours’ unpaid work in the community as an alternative to prison.
The NHS occupational therapist was also disqualified from driving for 16 months.