Death by dangerous driving charge dismissed
Sonn Macmillan Walker client Mr A has had his case dismissed by a judge at Bradford Crown Court. On 29 March 2013, Mr A was driving his van on the M62, when a bulge on one of the tyres caused it to delaminate and blow out. In the resultant crash, Mr A's mother in law sustained a fatal injury.
Mr A was charged with causing death by dangerous driving. The police collision investigator established that just before the blow out, the vehicle had been travelling at about 80mph and that the tread of the inner groove of the tyre was just beneath the legal limit. Despite this, Mr A’s advocate David Sonn secured the dismissal of the case before the trial on the basis that the prosecution had not shown that either the excess speed or the illegal tread had had any bearing on the blow out and that depending on the rotational position of the tyre when Mr A had inspected his tyres before the journey, the bulge might not have been apparent.
