A teenage mum has forgiven her boyfriend for drinking before crashing his car with her and their baby son inside.

Nicole Smith suffered horrendous injuries after boyfriend Joseph Mason smashed into a lamppost, trapping her inside.

The 19-year-old was cut free and airlifted to the Queen Elizabeth hospital in Birmingham with extensive injuries although Mason escaped with a gash to the head.

Miraculously, the couple’s son Oscar, then 17 months old, was unharmed in the accident.

The crash left Miss Smith with a severed left ear which had to be stitched back on, her jaw broken in two places, a fractured left forearm and she also lost two inches from her right forearm.

Her jaw, arm and wrist were rebuilt with titanium plates.

She also broke her right elbow and her left thigh bone was snapped in half and had to be rebuilt with a metal rod. She now walks with a limp.

She was forced to move back in with her family in Malvern and her injuries were so horrific her son initially cried when he saw her.

At Worcester Magistrates Court, Mason, of Belmont Street, Worcester, admitted driving while under the influence and driving without due care and attention along the A44 at Pinvin, near Pershore.

The court was told he had assumed the role of carer for Miss Smith but the couple’s relationship had suffered after the crash.

She said she had no idea when she got into the car that he had just drunk three pints of Grolsch lager.

In court, a statement was read out in which she said: “I often have down days in which I dislike Joe because he was the driver.

“In my opinion he was at fault.

“I don’t want him to go to prison because Oscar would miss him.”

The court was told a witness was overtaken by Mason, aged 23, while driving along the A44 towards Evesham in his Peugeot at about 7pm on Saturday, June 18, and remembered telling his wife “there’s a right idiot behind me”.

Seconds later Mason lost control and hit the lamppost, rolling the car which landed on its side.

A blood test showed he had 92mg of alcohol in 100ml of blood – the legal limit is 80mg.

Sam Lamsdale, defending, said Mason believed Grolsch was a weaker lager than his usual Stella and deeply regretted drinking.

Speaking after the case, Miss Smith said she had forgiven Mason, her boyfriend of three years.

She said: “Joe keeps saying if he had felt something he wouldn’t have got in the car.

“I genuinely think he didn’t feel he was affected.

“None of us noticed he had had a drink. He’s constantly moping about because he feels bad.”

Mason was sentenced to a community order with 12 months’ supervision and must complete an impaired drivers programme.

He was disqualified from driving for 16 months, must carry out 40 hours’ unpaid work and pay £85 costs.