A driver whose conviction for causing the death by dangerous driving in August 2008 of top Northern Ireland cyclist David McCall was overturned earlier this year has pleaded guilty at his retrial to the lesser charge of causing death by careless driving. He will be sentenced next month, reports the Belfast Telegraph and could face a jail term of up to three years.
In March 2010, Antrim Crown Court sentenced motorist Gerard Croome to five years’ imprisonment after he had been found guilty of causing the death of Mr McCall by dangerous driving.
At the trial, 28-year-old Croome, from Liverpool, admitted that he had been rushing to the Belfast International Airport to catch a flight, and said that father of two Mr McCall, who was taking part in a race, had swerved to avoid a small dog.
The 46-year-old cyclist, a Commonwealth Games medallist, worked as a civil servant but continued to be involved in cycling and had recently qualified as a commissaire.
The force of the impact broke Mr McCall’s bike in two, with the cyclist thrown from his bike and suffering fatal injuries. Witnesses said that Croome, who did not stop immediately but returned to the scene shortly afterwards, had been driving aggressively.
In January, the Court of Appeal quashed that verdict and ordered a retrial as a result of his lawyers arguing that there were sufficient differences in witness accounts to give rise to a sense of unease or doubt about the verdict.
At Croome’s initial trial, it was revealed that he had twice been convicted of speeding prior to Mr McCall’s death, and twice again afterwards.
Judge Norman Lockie, passing sentence at that original trial, remarked upon Croome’s apparent lack of remorse, while it was also revealed through pre-sentencing reports that he had not accepted the jury’s verdict and continued to protest his innocence.
On the second day of Croome’s retrial this week, once again at Antrim Crown Court, he pleaded guilty to the lesser charge of causing death by careless driving.
According to current sentencing guidelines, the maximum sentence that can be imposed for a conviction on that charge in a case that “borders on dangerous driving” is three years’ imprisonment.
Great for an ebike
I wonder if they have revisited the strange design of the steering limiter. In the previous model I believe it was a metal component impacting the...
Drive-through lanes are for people on or in a vehicle.. that includes bicycles.
I'm just finding it odd that Hugh thinks I should use a different cycle lane along the same stretch of road. ...
I'm a fell-runner and would think twice about attempting those steps in cleats. Who on earth decided that it was a good idea?
EF last team to declare... again... Gonna take a wild guess that we're all waiting on the same pick.
Check the rear wheel and cassette for any movement. Thru-axles are not 100% reliable, check the integrity of the freehub (my DT-Swiss came...
I like the frame. I don't like the top.
I think that unless a great deal of caution is used and protocols put in place, then COVID may very well rip through le tour, even though Boris has...
Definition of hard pass - a firm refusal or rejection of something