[A] WAGON driver accused of causing the death of a fellow motorist on the A66 at Stainmore by dangerous driving has gone on trial.
A jury at Carlisle Crown Court heard today (MON) how 30-year-old Jamie Armstrong was travelling eastbound from accommodation in Gretna to work in the North East – when his Audi A4 was in collision with an HGV close to the Stainmore cafe.
The crash occurred in darkness, at around 5-20am on September 8 in 2016. Lorry driver Ashley Cole had travelled out of the cafe car park, across the eastbound carriageway and temporarily stopped the tractor unit of his wagon in the central reservation preparing to turn west.
Prosecutor Charles Brown, opening the case, said as Cole waited there for 15 seconds, “his trailer blocked the entirety of the eastbound carriageway” and was “smack, bang” across it.
Cole, 56, told police he waited for other vehicles to pass, and set off having looked to his right and seen lights at the bottom of the sloping hill “but no nearer”. “He had been travelling for only approximately a second or so when Jamie Armstrong’s vehicle drove into collision with the side of his trailer,” said Mr Brown. Mr Armstrong – originally from Haltwhistle – suffered “catastrophic” and fatal head injuries, and was pronounced dead at the scene.
Jurors heard Cole, of Ecclesfield, near Sheffield, had pleaded guilty to causing death by careless driving. “He has admitted he was responsible for Mr Armstrong’s death, though he says his driving was only careless and not dangerous,” said Mr Brown.
The trial continues.
