A postman whose careless driving on his round killed an off-duty police officer as he rode a motorbike in South Cumbria has been sent to prison.
Oliver Evans, a PC attached to the mobile support unit at Kendal police station, was at home on Monday September16, having spent the weekend away with his fiancée, also a serving officer. As she rested ahead of a shift, Mr Evans decided to go for a ride on his Triumph Street Triple machine.
Carlisle Crown Court heard today he was a confident rider, described by colleagues who had previously travelled with him as someone who was not reckless and did not take unnecessary risks.
But as he travelled northbound on the A683 at Middleton — between Sedbergh and Kirkby Lonsdale — 27-year-old Mr Evans was left with little time to react as he took a left hand bend in the centre of his carriageway and was greeted with a Royal Mail van on the wrong side of the road at around 4pm.
Oncoming postie Graham Ellison, on his round in a Peugeot Bipper vehicle, had slowly overtaken a horse and cart travelling at 10mph but remained in the opposite lane ahead of that blind bend intending to pull right into a layby to collect mail from a post box.
A collision investigation expert concluded Mr Evans would have had a reaction time of only up to two seconds, and been left with an impression the whole road was occupied.
Prosecutor Rachael Woods said of Mr Evans: “His reaction was to brake hard in an emergency fashion with the front brake which, sadly, caused the motorbike to lift at the rear and throw him off over the handlebars, and he somersaulted end over end before impacting into the now stationary van.”
Mr Evans suffered a severe blunt force head injury and cervical spine injury, and was pronounced dead despite a number of people — including Ellison — trying to assist.
In moving victim impact statements, Mr Evans’ father, Simon, said his death “has left a huge void in my life and that of those with whom I am close”.
Mr Evans’ mother, Shirley, described the loss of a “model son” as “beyond words”. He was, she said, “caring and attentive with a constantly optimistic view on life and a great sense of humour.” “He was my rock and the light of my life,” she added.
His sister, Eleanor, described his loss as “devastating”, while Miss Bee told the court: “I do not think there are words to explain what it feels like to feel your whole world crash down around you, and to feel like you are stood in the rubble of your own life, without the very person who promised to be by your side for the rest of your life.”
Ellison — a 59-year-old man of previous good character who had served with the army and fire service — initially denied a charge of causing death by careless driving but later changed his plea to guilty.
He was sentenced this morning when his barrister, Colette Renton, said he thought of Mr Evans “every day”, and added: “He has a cross on his mantelpiece in his home to remind him of the events of that day.
After hearing all submissions in the case, Judge Nicholas Barker jailed Ellison for 32 weeks, and ordered him to serve a two-year driving ban when released after serving half his prison sentence
“It should have been obvious to you that by remaining in the opposite carriageway you were presenting a significant hazard to any oncoming vehicle,” the judge told Ellison, of Back Lane, Warton, near Carnforth.
“I am satisfied that you simply did not consider the safety of other road users.”
