Woman cleared of killing a cyclist after appearing to faint behind the wheel
A 4×4 driver who ran down a cyclist, hit another cyclist, ran into a car and then crashed against a lamp-post was acquitted of causing death by dangerous driving after claiming that she had fainted behind the wheel.
We are perturbed by news reports of a driver being acquitted of causing the death of cyclist Sharon Corless by dangerous driving. The Crown Prosecution dropped the case against driver Tracy Johnson of Warrington, based on evidence that she apparently fainted at the wheel. CTC does not know the full facts and it may well be that this fainting was both genuine and unforeseeable. However Ms Corless’s grieving husband Peter, who was riding with her at the time, is clearly not satisfied. Natural justice would suggest he should either have received a satisfactory explanation of the evidence or had the opportunity to hear it contested in court. And the driver was apparently using a mobile phone shortly before the collision – surely that at least should have led to a prosecution? We are investigating further.
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