A dad missed his daughter's birth after a horror crash with a lorry left him in a coma.
Stafford Crown Court heard Kevin Bateman, 35, is likely to never recover from the injuries he suffered after the 33-tonne lorry driven by Stephen Chadwick pulled out on him as he drove his Seat Ibiza on the A38 in Lichfield.
Mr Bateman was left in a coma following the crash just a week after finding out he was going to be a dad, and 16 months on he is still in a hospital in Sheffield unable to speak or move.
Although he has now opened his eyes, his condition is so severe he has still not been able to meet his daughter Grace.
Chadwick, 50, from Doncaster, drove his Volvo lorry "into the path" of Mr Bateman's car when rejoining the carriageway from Fradley South Petrol Station "without checking properly that the road was clear".
Mr Bateman, from Werrington, near Stoke, was on his way to work when the crash happened on February 6 last year at around 6.15am.
The court heard the conditions were dark, but traffic was “relatively light”.
Chadwick was initially charged with causing serious injury by dangerous driving, but yesterday prosecutors accepted his guilty plea to a lesser offence of careless driving.
His lawyer David James told the court he would lose his job if he was given a driving ban which would have an impact on his family, but Judge Michael Chambers banned him from getting behind the wheel for six months.
Judge Chambers told Chadwick: "That effect will be quite small compared to the effect your driving has had on the family of Mr Bateman.
"The prosecution accept this was not an easy junction to rejoin the carriageway from and at various points the view was obscured by signage.
"But it's clear that had you stopped and checked, you'd have got a proper and full view.
"Tachograph timings show you stopped at most for one or two seconds, which was woefully inadequate.
"Had you been convicted of the substantive offence (the original charge), it would be inevitable that a period of imprisonment would follow."
Mr James said: "Mr Chadwick wishes to offer his public apology to Mr Bateman and his family.
"The injury his driving caused doesn't leave him on a day to day basis and it's certainly not something he takes lightly.
"From a GP letter, you can see it weighs heavy on his mind and will continue to do so.
"He indicated that the reason he felt safe (to rejoin the carriageway) was that he'd been flashed by another driver.
"His driving on the journey up to that point showed he was conducting himself as a competent, careful driver.
"He's made an error of judgement, but it's not an example of a deliberate disregard of the rules of the road."
Prosecuting barrister Benjamin Lawrence read written evidence from Mr Bateman's partner, Victoria Roden where she explained the impact the crash has had on her.
Mr Lawrence said: "She had some scares in early pregnancy and missed his presence.
"She said it was difficult having to travel (to Sheffield, where he is still in hospital) to see her partner.
"He was unable to attend any scans and she had desperately wanted him to be there at the birth.
"She said it was both happy and extremely sad and their first Christmas was particularly difficult.
"She says they take it day by day and pray some day he'll open his eyes and meet his daughter."
Mr Bateman's dad, John, said it had been "very difficult to get the image of his son out of his head" after visiting him, Mr Lawrence told the court.
Chadwick was also ordered to pay fines and costs totalling nearly £2,000.