Jared Cook, 30, pleaded guilty in the County Court to one charge of negligent driving causing serious injury.

The court heard on the afternoon of January 10, 2019, Cook attended two hotels in Melbourne's eastern suburbs where he drank alcohol for several hours.

He left the second establishment at 7.20pm, and was seen driving erratically and speeding in the lead up to the collision at 7.40pm.

The court heard the victim was driving their Suzuki sedan south along Springvale Road in Nunawading. The victim was travelling at 70km/h in an 80km/h zone in the middle of three lanes of traffic.

The victim indicated to move to the right lane and as they did so, Cook came up in that lane at a very high speed.

Cook's car collided with the front passenger side of the victim's car, causing it to spin uncontrollably to the left across all three lanes.

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The victim's car struck the kerb and then flew through the air. The front of the car hit a tree on the nature strip and its rear went through the front fence of a residential property.

Cook's car also spun uncontrollably across all three lanes, and the driver's side struck the same tree before coming to rest, partially on the nature strip and partially in the far left lane, facing the wrong way.

The court heard Cook was travelling at 157km/h about 30 seconds before the crash and only applied the brake about one second before colliding with the victim's car.

Cook was uninjured in the crash. He recorded a blood alcohol reading of 0.17 - more than two times the legal limit - almost an hour after the crash.

The victim was taken to hospital with a range of internal injuries, including collapsed lungs, as well as soft-tissue injuries and fractures to their spine and wrist.

The court heard the victim was in intensive care for five days and in rehabilitation for more than five months. The victim still experiences ongoing impaired functioning and pain.

The court heard Cook, who was employed at Bendigo Health at the time of the offending, had been diagnosed with a longstanding complex post-traumatic stress disorder.

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A psychological report submitted to the court found Cook used alcohol as a way to escape from his mental health issues, but in the 10 months leading up the collision, had only drunk alcohol twice.

Judge Frances Hogan said the evidence indicated Cook understood the gravity of his offending, but she said the sentence needed to reflect the serious nature of the charges.

Judge Hogan said Cook's driving was not a momentary lapse of attention, but rather the result of hours of drinking. She said his moral culpability was high.

The Judge said Cook was compliant and remorseful in his police interviews, and he pleaded guilty at the earliest opportunity.

Cook also wrote a letter to the victim, which Judge Hogan said "demonstrated empathy" and a "sincere acceptance of responsibility".

Cook was convicted and sentenced to five years and three months in jail, with a non-parole period of three years and eight months.

He has already served 205 days in pre-sentence detention which has been reckoned as already served.

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