DRUNKEN schoolgirl Gabriella Edmondson killed one of her friends when she crashed her car on the A34 after a night out, a court heard.

Oxford Crown Court was told yesterday that the 18-year-old insisted on driving, despite being told by her friends she was too drunk.

She even ignored the efforts of one of them who tried to snatch her car keys, saying, “my car, my rules”.

Judge Mary Jane Mowat imposed an interim driving ban on Ed-mondson and ordered a pre-sentence probation service report.

Earlier, the St Edward’s School pupil stood in the glass-fronted dock at the city’s crown court and admitted a charge of causing the death of Grace Hadman by careless driving while over the prescribed alcohol limit.

The defendant was one-and-a-half times over the drink-driving alcohol limit when she crashed her Toyota Yaris at about 4.15am on April 7, on the A34 between the Pear Tree and Botley interchanges, west of Oxford.

She killed 17-year-old Grace and left another friend, promising young rugby player Joe Robinson, critically injured, following the smash. A fourth person escaped with minor injuries.

All four teenagers in the car were current or former pupils at St Edward’s, in Woodstock Road, and were believed to be returning from a nightclub at the start of the Easter school holidays.

Edmondson spoke only to confirm her name and to admit the single charge.

Cathy Olliver, prosecuting, said two friends told the defendant not to drive because she was clearly drunk as she got behind the wheel.

“Tests showed she had 121mg of alcohol per 100ml of blood in her system [the legal limit is 80mg] when the fatal crash happened.”

“The Crown says she was drunk,” said Ms Olliver. “Two people told her not to drive and one tried to take the keys off her.

“She said something along the lines of ‘my car, my rules’.”

The teenager showed no emotion as she stood in the dock.

Alexander Cameron, defending, said: “There’s no question that she was over the limit. There is also no question that she was driving.”

The judge adjourned the case for sentencing until October 9.

Edmondson, of Beacon Hill, Penn, High Wycombe, was granted bail until the sentencing hearing.

Grace Hadman, from Lower Swell, near Stow-on-the-wold, in Gloucestershire, was a boarder at St Edward’s School.

In a statement following her death, her family paid tribute to the “perfect girl” and said: “Our beautiful daughter and precious sister Grace died in a car crash and we can hardly manage without her.”

The teenager was studying for A-level maths, art and biology, and planned to take a gap year before going to university.

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