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news
Justice (Lonpicman, Wikimedia Commons)Lorry driver who failed to indicate when turning left convicted of killing cyclist
A lorry driver who failed to indicate or look in his mirrors while turning left has been found guilty of causing the death by careless driving of a cyclist in Nottingham.
The jury returned its verdict on the same day the Department for Transport launched a road safety campaign telling cyclists to “Hang Back” from lorries, leading to accusations of “victim blaming.”
> Cycling campaigners rethink DfT's "victim blaming" Think! video
Louise Wright, aged 29, was killed when she was dragged under the wheels of a Greene King delivery lorry driven by Adam Haywood, aged 31, on Lower Parliament Street on 3 July 2014, reports the Derby Telegraph.
Haywood, who pleaded not guilty, insisted he had checked his mirrors but could not recall having seen the cyclist nor whether he had indicated as he waited for the traffic lights to change, although he told the trial at Derby Crown Court that “there is no reason” he would not have done so.
Speaking about the collision, he said: "When I first turned it didn't feel right and I thought it might have fallen out of gear – I felt a bit of a shunt.
“I checked my gearbox and realised it wasn't that, so I thought I could have clipped the traffic light or the kerb or another car from the back end if it had kicked out.
"I heard some car horns and some shouting so I was looking around in my mirrors and saw her under the back wheels.
“I jumped out of the cab and ran around to the back. I saw her and ran to get the phone and called an ambulance. I didn't know what else to do."
After Haywood was convicted by a majority verdict, Judge Jonathan Bennett handed him an eight-month prison sentence suspended for two years, and banned him from driving for two years.
He also ordered Haywood to pay £1,500 costs and to perform 150 hours of unpaid work.
The judge said: “You are going to live with this for years to come and others will live with it for even longer than that.
"You did not, that day, I accept, expect this to happen, you set off to do a day's work, you were doing what you enjoyed doing, but you were careless that day."
Following the trial, Miss Wright’s mother, Sharon Brown, said: "I feel that the right verdict has been made, we did not want to see the driver sent to prison. When something as tragic as this happens, there are no winners."
Earlier, in a victim impact statement read out to the court, she described how her daughter had told her she was planning a family, and told the court she is “heartbroken” that will never happen.
Miss Wright’s partner James Faulkner told the court that the couple had been together since they were both aged 14.
"I have lost everything, my life has been completely reset and I have no idea how to start again without Louise,” he said.
"She was unique, she was so very special. She was always there to support me physically and emotionally and now I go home to an empty house every night.
"Most days it is a challenge just to get out of bed," he added.
Simon joined road.cc as news editor in 2009 and is now the site’s community editor, acting as a link between the team producing the content and our readers. A law and languages graduate, published translator and former retail analyst, he has reported on issues as diverse as cycling-related court cases, anti-doping investigations, the latest developments in the bike industry and the sport’s biggest races. Now back in London full-time after 15 years living in Oxford and Cambridge, he loves cycling along the Thames but misses having his former riding buddy, Elodie the miniature schnauzer, in the basket in front of him.
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21 comments
It's even more grim than that. There've been cases of drivers finishing the victims off, as, if they are caught, compensation for death is cheaper than paying for someone's treatment for serious injuries, year-on-year. Medieval behaviour.
Why is a killer like this allowed to have a limited ban?
They have demonstrated their incompetence in the most serious possible way. They should be banned for a number of years, and then required to pass a driving test again; they should be permannently banned from driving a large vehicle (say, anything bigger than a standard PLG category).
They should be banned from driving as a job.
Instead, this person will serve the bad-joke-length ban, then be driving huge lorries again shortly afterwards. The sentence practically invites the perpetrator to go out killing again.
chill out. It's not like he killed someone with hopes and dreams, someone with a family who will miss him, a member of society whose most basic fucntion is to protect the lives of it's menbers. It's just a cyclist. And it's not like he was killed by something other than a motorvehicle, which, as we all know, is a completely acceptable impement to do anything especially homicide.
It's about time that driving any motorised transport on the roads is regarded as a privilage rather than a basic right. It should be far easier to take away that privilage permanently.
Also, I think that the companies who employ these bad drivers should be investigated as many place unrealistic targets on the drivers, which encourage speeding, cutting corners and bad driving in general.
you can class it as victim blaming but I seriously think as a cyclist you should anticipate and expect the worst, particularly when a vehicle emerges from a junction or ther is a left turn opportunity.
Take the moral high ground if you want but your family wont thank you when they're stood over your grave.
If you treat every motorist as a fcking retard and assume at all times they haven't seen you, you will be far safer. The amount of times I have avoided collisions (funnily enough I avoided one today) by assuming every car driver hasnt seen me and is going to do the unthinkable is untrue.
Above all else just steer clear of buses and lorries.
Sound advice, that I wholly agree with. Although this is one of those classic left hooks with the added danger of no mirror checks or indication. It's a bit like the DfT saying stay back. Sometimes (usually) it has sweet fa to do with the way you are riding, and everything to do with how the deathtrap about to randomly turn into you is operated.
So you are right, victim blaming indeed.
The real issue is the judicial " you didn't mean to" punishment. His driving fell far below any standards, and he should be without a license for alot longer, with checks on his driving carried out at all levels after his ban. It's actually logical because he won't have been driving for quite a while during his ban, his standards may have slipped further.
I think bans are more appropriate, particularly if it involves a large vehicle, taxi or bus. Allow them to retest for normal cars and motorbikes after a 3-5year ban, but bar them from retaking HGV license, or taxi license etc. Also, any collision involving serious injury or death should be reported to insurance for 10 years instead of 5.
To be fair, from the report, he sounds much more remorsefull than we usually hear. Stayed at the sceen, called ambulance, admitted guilt in court... Frankly, prision probbly isn't the best way to deal with this situation.
However the driving ban should be longer.
And if you break a driving ban - then it should be stright to prison.
remorsefull, lol, read again, he pleaded NOT guilty
I wouldn't be surprised to hear that he appeals the driving ban as a cruel and unsusal punishment.
You shouldn't have an HGV license after the ban. Start back at the beginning with a provisional. Practice. Do another car test. When you have demonstrated you can do that to a competent standard start thinking about other tests.
Go back further, cycling proficiency test. Showing my age.
Agree prison should be for where there was intent. An accident through negligence should cost time and money to the defendant. Outside of prison they can earn to pay that.
If they cause death by accident they should be banned from driving for life. Taxi's and busses will benefit, and no other road user will ever suffer from their ignorance. They should also be taxed to support victim support, for the rest of their working life.
You know what, I don't care that he didn't go to prison. Did he go out that morning intending to kill someone? Of course not, he's not a psychopath, he's just an idiot who made a mistake. Putting him in prison just means that we all pay for his stupidity through our taxes. So let him walk "free", but the penalty should hurt. What if 25% of his earnings for the next N years went to the family and friends of the deceased and to road safety education?
Agreed and prevent him from driving again
"Did he go out that morning intending to kill someone? "
Probably not. Did he go out intending to drive carefully enough to avoid killing someone? Probably not. Except that we'd have to feed him, I'd hope he never works again.Certainly not driving anything.
The trouble with paying money towards the victim is that it encourages people to just continue driving after the accident, as is witnessed in China. People are killed/injured and nobody wants to be responsible for the bill so don't stop. Not a good idea.
A friend of mine was doing some work at home one day, he had been drnking a few beers as he went along his way. Then for some reason him & his girlfriend had a massive row.
She stormed off and he, not thinking, jumped in his car to go after her. He crashed in to a barrier on the side of the road. Nobody was injured. He was breathalysed and arrested for drink driving.
At court he held his hands up, made no excuses and was sentenced to 24 months in prison.
I'm not making any excuses for my friend, as he didn't in court. But how does this sentence tally? My friend had no intention of driving on the day, he had no intention of crashing etc. etc.
What was he charged with? The maximum sentence for driving with excess alcohol is 6 months so there must have been other, more serious offences.
Not sure to be honest, maybe I overstated the term. Seemed like he was inside for a long while.
I bet his wrist is stinging now... That'll teach him!
A suspended sentence, ie. walk free.
F**king sick.