Teaching assistant denies causing death of off-duty police officer on Yorkshire road by careless driving - as court hears he was speeding on motorbike

Charlotte Hannah Crawford, 26, is on trial at York Crown Court and denies causing the death of PC Patrick Casey, 29, an off-duty North Yorkshire Police officer, by careless driving on the B1222 near Sherburn-in-Elmet in July 2021.

She was turning right at a junction when PC Casey, who was travelling towards her, collided with her Ford Fiesta as she returned to her home in Selby from a shopping trip to Leeds.

The prosecution argue that Crawford, a teaching assistant, performed the turn when the approaching motorcycle should have been visible to her, but her defence lawyers claim that the speed of PC Casey – estimated as up to 117mph – contributed to the crash at the Biggin crossroads.

PC Casey, an Army veteran, had set off with a group of other riders, including his father and brother, from Hull for a trip to the Squires Cafe Bar in Sherburn, a popular bikers’ destination. He and his sister’s partner, Kyle Bolton, were the last to leave as Mr Bolton was late to the meeting point at the Humber Bridge.

Mr Bolton said in evidence that the group were ‘careful’ and rode at the speed limit ‘always looking out for each other’. He was behind PC Casey after they overtook a group of cyclists, but lost sight of him as he descended a hill ahead of him.

Angela Gibb, the driver of the Seat Leon travelling behind Crawford’s car, saw PC Casey’s bike coming down the hill as she approached the junction and was ‘alarmed’ as the Fiesta had started its turn and she didn’t believe it had enough time to complete it.

She added that the Suzuki GSX 1300 motorcycle was ‘coming down fast’ and that the impact happened ‘incredibly quickly’.

David Varley, who was approaching the junction Crawford was turning into, said she had cut the corner and would have hit his car had he been waiting there. Forensic collision investigators called by both the prosecution and defence later disagreed on this point, with the defence expert saying that that cutting had been ‘marginal’.

Another witness, Anthony Stephenson, was overtaken by both PC Casey and Mr Bolton shortly before the collision, said that although the manner of their driving was not dangerous, he was concerned by their speed and commented on it to his wife. He said: “It was the fastest I’d ever seen bikes overtake me. Their speed was unbelievable.”

The experts will also be asked whether if PC Casey’s speed, calculated at between 85-117mph by a police investigator, had been lower the collision would have been avoided, but prosecution expert Nigel Varney said he believed Crawford ‘had an element of culpability’ to see the approaching bike, described as a ‘powerful’ model capable of reaching 160mph.

PC Casey had only joined North Yorkshire Police in September 2020 having left the Army Air Corps following a 10-year military career. He was based in Scarborough.

The trial continues.