A 17-year-old girl died after she 'inhaled a balloon containing nitrous oxide', lost control of her car and crashed, an inquest has heard.
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inquest → die → car
Lucy Knapp was killed after her Seat Ibiza Xcellence left the road and hit a tree on Headcorn Road between Staplehurst and Headcorn about 8.25pm on June 11.
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Xcellence → kill → June
The teenager had two passengers in the backseat of the Seat - Sam Elliott, 19, and Ashton Stock, 17 – who were both seriously injured in the crash.
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who → have → crash
While Ms Knapp had a seatbelt on, neither of her passengers did.
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neither → have → passengers
Both were rushed to hospital with serious injuries and have since been discharged.
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Both → rush → injuries
An inquest into her death at Oakwood House in Maidstone last Thursday heard evidence from Detective Constable David Holmes who investigated the crash.
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who → hear → crash
DC Holmes told the inquest a Snapchat video had been recovered from Mr Elliott's phone showing Ms Knapp 'with an inflated balloon with the neck of it in her mouth'.
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video → tell → mouth
The video, which the investigator said had been recorded 30 seconds before the crash, showed her backseat passengers also had balloons.
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passengers → say → balloons
He added that several nitrous oxide canisters were later found in the back of the car.
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canisters → add → car
Lucy Knapp (pictured with mother Carlie Shepherd) was killed after her Seat Ibiza Xcellence left the road and hit a tree on Headcorn Road between Staplehurst and Headcorn on June 11
Ms Knapp had passed her driving test just four months before the horror crash (pictured)
Nicole Knapp (left) has described her little sister Lucy (right) as her best friend
DC Holmes told the inquest the most likely conclusion was that Ms Knapp had inhaled a balloon containing nitrous oxide which 'has caused her effects that severely impacted her driving'.
However, a toxicology report by senior forensic scientist Rebecca Stennings found no evidence of drugs or alcohol in Ms Knapp's system.
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report → picture → system
A pathologist report also noted that although her nitrate levels were 'slightly raised' at 1.33 milligrams, it could also sit in the normal range of someone who, for example, had a vegetable-rich diet.
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who → note → diet
DC Holmes said he had made repeated efforts to speak to Ms Knapp's passengers.
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he → say → passengers
He told the inquest Mr Stock only gave 'minimal information' and only remembered going to a Sainsbury's in Staplehurst at about 7.30pm.
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Stock → tell → 7.30pm
He told police the trio might have got some food or gone to an ATM.
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trio → tell → ATM
Meanwhile, Mr Elliott and his family had declined to speak to police and relayed that he did not remember anything from the crash, the inquest was told.
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inquest → decline → crash
When questioned by Ms Knapp's father, James, about the lack of information from the pair, DC Holmes said that he could not 'force someone to talk to us'.
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he → question → us
Mr Knapp, who works for the RAF in Cyprus, told the Daily Mail that there was no factual evidence that Lucy had lost control of the car due to drugs.
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Lucy → work → drugs
Mr Knapp, told the Daily Mail that there was no factual evidence that Lucy had lost control of the car due to drugs.
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Lucy → tell → drugs
He is pictured with his daughters Lucy (middle) and Nicole (right)
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He → picture → daughters
He said: 'The only two people that know are Sam Elliott and Ashton Stock.
'
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that → say → ?
They will be the two people to ask.
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They → ask → ?
It's disappointing because it puts Lucy in a bad light when really, only those two know what actually happened.
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what → put → light
[It's] something I might never know.'
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I → know → ?
Lucy Knapp's mother, Carlie Shepherd, told the coroner her daughter was a 'bubbly, forward person' and had been against drugs.
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daughter → tell → drugs
She said she had noticed changes when her daughter met Mr Elliott, less than six months earlier.
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daughter → say → Elliott
The inquest was also told that in the last five seconds before the crash, there was initially 'gentle' acceleration until the very last second when there was full acceleration with 'no evidence of braking at any point'.
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inquest → tell → point
Kent Police concluded no third-party vehicles were involved and located only one piece of CCTV footage shortly before the crash from a nearby farm.
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vehicles → conclude → farm
No footage showed the crash and the car was found to have no mechanical defects.
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car → show → defects
The inquest heard the Seat had been travelling at around 76mph in a 30mph zone when the airbag deployed at the point of impact.
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airbag → hear → impact
Coroner Jyoti Gill noted that although Ms Knapp's nitrate levels were 'mildly elevated' when she died, the nitrate levels could be linked to a number of factors.
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levels → note → factors
Her cause of death was recorded as multiple injuries caused by a road accident.
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cause → record → accident
The coroner told the inquest: 'I am unable to conclude on the balance of probabilities that the level detected caused her to lose control of the vehicle.
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her → tell → vehicle
The reason she lost control could not be established on the balance of probabilities.'
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she → lose → probabilities
Nicole Knapp, 20, said: 'To me, Lu wasn't just my little sister; she was my best friend.
'
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she → say → me
We spoke about everything, gave each other advice, supported each other and, most importantly, made each other laugh.'
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other → speak → other
Ms Shepherd said her 'beautiful' daughter 'had a way of making everyone smile'.
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everyone → say → way
Over £5,000 was raised to fund a funeral for the 17-year-old, who was born in Oxford but spent most of her life in Ashford.
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who → raise → Ashford
She is survived by her sisters Nicole, 20, Brooke, 12, and brother, Kacper, six, along with her step-siblings, Eloise, Tia and Kai.
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She → survive → siblings
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