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news
Justice (Lonpicman, Wikimedia Commons)Corner-cutting motorist who blamed low sun for killing cyclist spared jail
A West Lothian motorist who hit and killed an oncoming cyclist while turning off an A-road has been ordered to complete 225 hours of community service after pleading guilty to causing death by careless driving. Barry McConnell said he had been “blinded by the sun” as he was turning and that he had failed to see Gwyn Bailey because the cyclist was wearing black and riding in the shadow of a hedge.
On February 27, 2019, McConnell turned right off the A89 near Bangour Village Hospital and into Bailey, who was riding in the opposite direction. He had turned from a filter lane without stopping, cutting the corner as he did so.
Despite the efforts of paramedics, Bailey died at the scene.
Richard Freeman, defending, said McConnell hadn’t seen the cyclist as he had been in the shadow of a hedgerow.
“As a matter of meteorological opinion, his view of the cyclist in question was obscured for the length of that hedgerow because of the shadow, because the cyclist was wearing black clothing, because the cyclist was in a crouched position – and this is no criticism of the cyclist – because the cyclist was in close proximity to the darkest part of the shadow.
“Unfortunately, as he’s turning, he’s turning into the sun, it blinds him and, very unfortunately, he hits the cyclist. The way this offence arose it’s almost like a perfect storm.”
Sheriff Susan Craig said: “I don’t accept any suggestion, if it was being made, that what Mr Bailey was wearing should in any way mitigate any part of his responsibility for what happened that day.
“It’s clear from the photographs that the clothing was entirely appropriate cycling gear and I reject any such suggestion.
“I’m told your sight was dazzled by the sun as you turned the junction, but the other statements in this case suggest that the sun wasn’t particularly bright and others were driving without their face visors.
“The point at which you may have been dazzled was when you started your manoeuvre, but up to that point you should have been able to see Mr Bailey cycling towards you.”
The Daily Record reports that McConnell was originally charged with causing death by dangerous driving but pleaded guilty to the lesser charge of causing death by driving without due care and attention.
Craig said the offence was towards the upper end of the scale because McConnell had been on a straight road with a good line of sight in clear conditions and with nothing to obscure his view.
She sentenced him to 225 hours of unpaid work and made him subject to a home curfew for nine months, during which he will be confined to his home from 9pm to 6am Monday to Friday and from 7pm until 7am at weekends.
He was banned from driving for 45 months and must pass an extended driving test before regaining his licence.
He was also fined £1,275 for having no MoT and for having tinted side windows that were almost twice as dark as legally permitted.
Bailey’s widow, Leanne, was upset at the sentence.
“I feel heartbroken for Gwyn, knowing the driver who ended his life still gets to walk free,” she said.
“I know it’s one of the most severe sentences handed out, but a few hours of picking up litter is not justice for killing someone and house arrest doesn’t make any difference right now when the whole country is in lockdown and can’t go anywhere anyway.
“While we’re upset at the sentence I am glad the defence arguments were rightly dismissed – it was utterly disgraceful they were trying to blame Gwyn.
“He took Gwyn’s life. My husband. My daughter’s father. A dear friend to many and a positive member of the community. That driver destroyed our lives.”
Freeman said: “Mr McConnell fully appreciates that anything I say about how he and his family have been affected by this would not even scratch the surface of the depth of loss and pain and suffering that the victim’s family have been going through but I still think it’s important that it’s heard how much this has affected him.”
Freeman said McConnell had had trouble sleeping and had suffered from spells of anxiety.
“I appreciate that no sentence will ever bring the victim back or offer any consolation to his family but the circumstances of this case are that it was something that was very tragic borne out of restricted visibility.”
Alex has written for more cricket publications than the rest of the road.cc team combined. Despite the apparent evidence of this picture, he doesn't especially like cake.
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29 comments
Disgusting. This idiot drives straight at an innocent man, kills him, and then walks free from court. What sort of justice is that?!
to paraphrase his defence "I couldn't see properly out my darkened windows (but I looked cool) I was driving as fast as I could (because I can) and I cut the corner to the wrong side of the road (well its the racing line afterall) and it was a shame the rider was there but his death is just one of those things m'lud "
The twat is 47 years old. Why on earth is he driving some chavmobile with illegally tinted windows? Illegal vehicle, shit driving, kills someone and STILL walks free from court.
Mid-life crisis? He thinks that a cool car will make him look 18 again; sad isn't it. Not nearly as sad as the fact that his pathetic insecurity killed an innocent cyclist.
Jail the bastard until he grows up.
A curfew as a sentence in a time of lockdown. That'll do.
What on earth does that even mean, other than 'I want to try to obscure the issue by introducing an extraneous phrase that I hope sounds impressive'?
If this solicitor isn't actually the real Mr Loophole, he does a very good impression.
I'm glad to see the all too often excuse "blinded by the sun" was kicked on to touch. I'd like to see a positive change to driving instruction and the test regarding dealing with the sun and driving . By the time drivers reach 17 they surely must've realised that the big yellow thing in the sky does make it hard to see if you look at it directly at certain times of the day . Notwithstanding that , let's teach them again in the test , and what to do . Perhaps self driving cars will take all this nonsense out of the equation.
Was out on a ride yesterday with the low sun behind me. A car came the other way and was travelling at a cautious speed when the driver obviously found she suddenly had the sun in her eyes as she crested a small hill. She slowed down. There was never any danger but she erred on the side of caution. Why isn't this behaviour mandatory?
P.S. This is the first time I've noticed this which is why I thought it worthy of comment.
This leniency with people who kill others whilst operating a vehicle on the road is not even partisan, it affects all road users. As a society we seem to be ridiculously tolerant of serious injuries and deaths caused by drivers. I'm not particularly for locking people up who made a mistake and there are no aggravating factors in the offence but permanent removal of driving privileges has to be a realistic prospect to be any sort deterrent or at least reminder to others of their responsibilities behind the wheel.
Heartfelt condolences to the friends and family of Gwyn Bailey. Who must feel even more despairing following this particular sentence.
"McConnell had had trouble sleeping and had suffered from spells of anxiety."
And the family ?
I can't write anymore as there will be too many swear words.
It must be terrible living with the consequences of your own actions. I can only imagine all the mental anguish of taking responsibility for your own carelessness costing someone else's life. Luckily, he decided to just blame things like dark clothing and low sun, so he's obviously not taking responsibility at all.
Just be pleased you're not in Germany. Yesterday, a court in Bonn fined a lorry driver €3600 for turning off and killing a young woman cyclist (negligent homicide) who was passing on the inside with right of way on the cycle lane. Keeps his licence because he had been such a good driver for 35 years!
It does seem to be a worldwide problem. I'd be happy to hear otherwise.
Perhaps they should have curfewed him in reverse, and said he's not allowed out when the sun is shining just in case it blinds him again...
That sentence should be appealed. A cyclist riding an illegal bike hits and kills a pedestrian is imprisoned for 18mths and the newspapers go nuts to demand for new laws to protect us against cyclists. A driver using an illegal car hits and kills a cyclist is not even imprisoned for a day. If you want to get away with murder, put your intended victim on a bike and run them over.
Assuming that you're referring to the Alliston case, he was cleared of the manslaughter charge, though guilty of causing bodily harm. That means that the jury did not consider that he 'killed' the pedestrian even though her injuries did lead to her death. That makes this sentencing even more bizarre considering that the driving directly caused death.
I am, and the irony is that there have been so few instances since that one where a cyclist has hit and killed a pedestrian so the clamour to implement a new law was ridiculous. If his sentence was appropriate it should have set a precedence, so that all subsequent deaths caused by riders and drivers receive similar sentences. That would encourage drivers at least to consider the risk of death they pose every time they get behind the wheel and what it might mean to their freedom. And the roads might then be safer, and we might not need to demand so much protected infrastructure.
Indeed wanton and furious cycling attracts an 18 month sentance, while death by careless driving is community service only, but hey lets review cycling laws as they are too lenient and not inline with driving laws.
Well, that's a disgraceful sentence. I've said it many times before, but if you're at fault for taking someone's life whilst driving then that should be an automatic lifetime driving ban. There's no point in having yet another careless, corner-cutting driver on the road and especially as they've demonstrated how dangerous that lack of care can be.
To be frank, if I'd done this to somebody and their family then I don't think I'd ever want to drive a car again. But that's beside the point, bans need to much much longer.
Yes, but he's not being frank. Odds on he will be itching to drive again as soon as possible
As far as I can tell with a quick search, the starting point for this is 15 months custody, with a range of 36 weeks to 3 years. Aggravating factors here - no MoT and dark windows, plus attempt to blame the victim. Mitigation might have included guilty plea but that's after a not guilty plea to the more serious charge. Not sure if that makes a difference.
The clear lie about it not being possible to see the cyclist due to his being in an aero position (which magically could be seen) should mean the book is thrown.
So it's a woeful sentence after that summary from the sheriff. We do need lifetime bans for taking a life and every sentence should show the judicial arithmetic.
This just makes it worse for the man's family, and it could happen to any cyclist.
It's almost like the driver's right to drive is more important than the cyclist's right to life.
Thank you eburt, that is the issue
No deterrent in the sentencing.
Appalled by this sentence. Yes. Shocked. No. Driver driving illegally with defective car ploughs into cyclist and he won't spend one day behind bars. What gets me he attempts to shift some blame onto the cyclist and the sun, but if the sun was that bad (and by all accounts it wasn't) why was he not adjusting driving to suit the conditions i.e. taking more care at the junction. The sentance's for killing with a car are nothing short of a disgrace not just here all around Europe. I so alot of road cycling and when I see things like this it does make me wonder is it worth it 😔 Thoughts with his family.
The Sherriff rejected all his mitigation excuses about not being able see, recognised he was driving an illegal vehicle, and STILL didn't jail him, and only banned him from driving for 45 months.
Let's just imagine that this was a health and safety case - what would happen to someone who incompetently used heavy machinery, who knew it was not safely maintained and had dangerous and illegal modifications, and ended up killing someone. Would they escape jail? Would they be allowed to use that same machinery in a few years time? Of course they wouldn't.
In Scotland, often the answer is yes. Remember the Glasgow bin lorry driver? 6 dead, oh dear, never mind...