THE safety of the pavement was just a yard away when Andy Priaulx’s mind coach was knocked down and almost killed, the Magistrate’s Court heard yesterday.
The World Touring Car Champion’s mentor, Ian Pollock (pictured), suffered serious head injuries which left him fighting for his life in Southampton General Hospital.
Driver Timothy Sheppard, of Mayfair, 47, Clos des Isles, Les Banques, St Sampson’s, denies driving without due care and attention in St Julian’s Avenue early one Friday evening in April last year. The case against him opened yesterday with the court hearing prosecution witnesses.
Vicky La said she was walking towards the avenue from the lane next to The Swan pub [Lower Canichers] when she saw Mr Sheppard’s car coming up the hill from the right.
‘I saw a lot of people and very quickly a man ran across the road,’ she said.
‘I saw the car hit him and he fell down. His head banged on the pavement and what I saw most clearly was when the car ran over his leg.’
Mr Pollock had almost reached the other side of the road.
Timothy Lesbirel told how he had been backing his car out of Birch Insurance onto the pavement when he saw the incident in his rear-view mirror.
‘The first thing I saw was the impact,’ he said. ‘I believe he was very close to the pavement – two or three feet away perhaps. I saw him fold on to the bonnet, then on to the windscreen, then he fell from the top of the car on to the pavement.’
Claire Goubert said she had stopped her car near the steps opposite the Lower Canichers. Mr Pollock and his wife came down the steps behind her and Mrs Pollock turned down towards The Ribshack while her husband turned up the hill.
‘I heard the car and turned around but, by the time I did, I saw him roll off the bonnet.’
Police vehicle examiner Geoff Le Page said that the exhaust and the air filter had been modified, which would have marginally improved performance.
This work had been carried out properly.
There was a potential problem with a binding brake but he could not say whether the brakes had been a contributing factor.
The driver’s seat was reclined to an angle of 138 degrees. The normal angle was between 110 and 120 degrees and the low driving position could have caused problems with the setting sun shining into the driver’s eyes.
Advocate Rachel Eeles said the incident had happened at 6.30pm, but police had not impounded the vehicle until 10pm.
PC Andrew Simon told how he had been driving a patrol car at the bottom of St Julian’s Avenue when someone directed him towards the incident.
He described the scene as chaos and said the traffic was building up. At the request of his fellow officer, he later moved Mr Sheppard’s car to a nearby unloading bay but he could not remember whether he had adjusted the seat.
The case continues at 9.30am today when Mr Sheppard will give evidence.
Article posted on 21st May, 2008 - 2.29pm
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