South Yorkshire Police to review smart motorway deaths to see if Highways England should be held criminally responsible

Police are to review a coroner's files into the deaths of two men killed on a smart motorway to see if there is scope for a criminal investigation.
Jason Mercer was one of two men killed on a smart motorway near Sheffield in June 2019Jason Mercer was one of two men killed on a smart motorway near Sheffield in June 2019
Jason Mercer was one of two men killed on a smart motorway near Sheffield in June 2019

Lorry driver Prezemyslaw Szuba has already been jailed for causing the deaths of Jason Mercer and Alexandru Murgeanu due to his careless driving, when he collided with both men who had stopped on the hard shoulder of the M1 smart motorway near Sheffield in June 2019.

The hard shoulder was open as a live lane at the time as part of the smart motorway initiative to ease congestion.

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But an inquest into both men's deaths last month found that the lack of a hard shoulder contributed to the collision which killed them instantly, while coroner David Urpeth adding that smart motorways presented an "ongoing risk of future deaths".

Jason Mercer's widow Claire (pictured) has campaigned for greater awareness of the dangers of smart motorwaysJason Mercer's widow Claire (pictured) has campaigned for greater awareness of the dangers of smart motorways
Jason Mercer's widow Claire (pictured) has campaigned for greater awareness of the dangers of smart motorways

Following the hearing, in which a verdict of unlawful killing was recorded, the widow of Mr Mercer said she was hoping to see whether criminal charges could be brought against Highways England – the Government body overseeing the country's motorways and major roads.

South Yorkshire Police has confirmed it has now requested a review of the coroner's files to assess if Highways England should be investigated over corporate manslaughter.

A spokeswoman for the force said: "The criminal investigation South Yorkshire Police conducted concerning the tragic deaths of Jason Mercer and Alexandru Murgeanu led to the successful prosecution of Mr Szuba for dangerous driving with a sentence of 10 months imprisonment.

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"Following a review of HM Coroner’s Prevention of Future Death report, South Yorkshire Police will be requesting full disclosure from HM Coroner of all documents and evidence, which led to his conclusions that the evidence showed there was an obvious and foreseeable risk posed by the absence of a hard shoulder on smart motorways."

Smart motorways operate by opening the hard shoulder as a live lane to ease congestionSmart motorways operate by opening the hard shoulder as a live lane to ease congestion
Smart motorways operate by opening the hard shoulder as a live lane to ease congestion

The spokeswoman stressed that there was no suggestion, at present, that Highways England were criminally responsible for Mr Mercer's and Murgeanu's deaths, but that they were reviewing the case to see if a crime had been committed.

She added: "We wish to be clear that SYP is not instigating a formal criminal investigation into Highways England.

"This review of any additional material generated from the inquest will allow SYP to determine if a crime has been committed, and as a consequence, whether any further criminal investigations should take place, in close consultation with the Health and Safety Executive."

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It follows a decision made by a coroner in Doncaster last week over the death of Sheffield grandmother Nargis Begum, who was killed after a collision on the live lane of the same stretch of motorway.

Coroner Nicola Mundy referred the case of Mrs Begum onto the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) to consider criminal charges against Highways England.

South Yorkshire Police added that it was aware of the decision made on Thursday, and that it would await Ms Mundy's findings.

Transport Secretary Grant Shapps published a smart motorways action plan in March 2020 which said they were safe, but conceding there was more that could be done to "raise the bar".

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Highways England has always expressed its sympathies over the deaths of Mr Mercer, Mr Murgeanu and Mrs Begum, and while it had denied criminal responsibility it has maintained that it would work with authorities where necessary.

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