After the cyclist was struck, Grey went to Sainsbury’s to buy groceries
A pedestrian was jailed for three years on Thursday for killing an elderly cyclist who fell into the path of a car after being yelled at for riding on a pavement
Auriol Grey gestured in a “hostile and aggressive way” towards retired midwife Celia Ward, 77, who then fell into the path of an oncoming car.
A video shown to Peterborough Crown Court captured the moment Grey, 49, shouted at Ward to “get off the [expletive] pavement”.
Moments later Ward appears to wobble off the pavement into the carriageway at Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire, where she is struck by a VW Passat.
Grey, who has cerebral palsy, denied manslaughter but was found guilty following a retrial at Peterborough Crown Court.
Judge Sean Enright acknowledged Grey’s partial blindness, cognitive and mobility issues and cerebral palsy, but said: “It does not reduce your understanding of right or wrong.
“You have not expressed a word about remorse until today in the pre-sentencing notes.
“I accept the explanation from the counsel and that the difficulty you would face in custody and afterwards are considerable.”
The court heard the two women passed each other in opposite directions on the pavement of the town’s ring road pavement on 20 October 2020.
The prosecution claimed Grey was “angered by the presence of a cyclist on a footpath”.
Prosecutor Simon Spence KC said Grey shouted at Ward and “gestured in a hostile and aggressive way towards” her, causing the pensioner to fall off the bike and into the road where she was hit by an oncoming car.
Jurors heard the vehicle had no chance to stop or take avoiding action and Ward died at the scene.
The court heard Grey left prior to emergency services arriving and went to Sainsbury’s where she bought groceries.
In her police interview, Grey, who has cerebral palsy, told officers she was partially sighted and described the pedal cycle as travelling “fast” in the centre of the pavement.
She stated she was “anxious that I was going to get hit by it”, adding she “may have unintentionally put” out her hand to protect herself.
But after being shown the CCTV footage, interviewing officer detective sergeant Mark Dollard asked her why she said what she said, to which she responded: “I don’t know.”
The court was told police could not “categorically” state whether the pavement was a shared cycleway.
After the verdict, Dollard said: “This is a difficult and tragic case. ”
“Everyone will have their own views on cyclists, pavements and cycleways but what is clear is Auriol Grey’s response to the presence of Celia on a pedal cycle was totally disproportionate and ultimately found to be unlawful, resulting in Celia’s untimely and needless death. ”
“I am pleased with the verdict and hope it is a stark reminder to all road users to take care and be considerate to each other.
“I want to take the time to acknowledge Celia’s family and thank them for their patience and dignity throughout the entirety of the investigation and trial.”
Prior to sentencing a victim impact statement was read to the court from Celia’s daughter, Gillian Hayter.
She said: “The lack of any remorse from the accused cannot be underestimated in having a profound effect on us all.
“I can still remember the details of the conversation on hearing my mother was killed in a cycling accident.
“The panic and disbelief and shock of losing her in such an awful accident was hard to comprehend.
“But the news that it was not a tragic accident but a deliberate act of violence was incomprehensible.
“Mum is the least violent person. “We have not had a chance to properly grieve and the court case has been a constant reminder to us that mum is no longer here.”
Related links:
- Woman tried to saw boyfriend’s head off with a bread knife after stabbing him 29 times – but he survived
- Children’s doctor had 1,300,000 child abuse pictures of young girls
- Harvey Weinstein sentenced to 16 more years in prison
- Andrew Tate says he walks 10km and does 500 squats and 500 pushups inside prison every day
- Woman who fought off attacker after he chased her around gym speaks out
