Off-duty officer 'failed to stop' after car hit student

Published 09th Mar 2010

An off-duty police chief inspector whose car struck a university student on a dual carriageway failed to stop and claimed he thought he had hit a post, despite having the victim's blood and skin on his shattered windscreen, a court heard today.

Jamie Jones, from West Midlands Police, hit Warwick University student Raymond Cheung on the Coventry-bound carriageway of the A45 in the early hours of March 8 last year.

Jones, 38, carried on driving after the fatal impact, leaving the victim's body in the road to be struck by a second car, Shrewsbury Crown Court heard.

Malcolm Morse, prosecuting, told jurors that Jones was not to blame for Mr Cheung's death as the student emerged on the road just a second or two before the collision.

The inspector is charged with misconduct in a public office for failing to stop at the scene and dangerous driving. The charge of dangerous driving relates not to his driving before the collision, but to the allegation that he continued to drive with a smashed windscreen.

Mr Morse told the jury that on the morning of the collision Jones was travelling along the road, which links Birmingham and Coventry, in his BMW Series 5 at a speed just below the limit of 60mph.

He said the collision with Mr Cheung was "entirely unavoidable", explaining: "He is not criminally responsible for Raymond Cheung's death, there was nothing he could have done to avoid it."

But the prosecutor said Jones "must have known" he had hit a person and failed in his duty as a police officer when he did not pull over at the scene.

Mr Morse said: "He did not stop. There is some evidence from a taxi driver who was on the scene at the time of the collision that he actually speeded up and he drove away."

The court heard that a number of other motorists who spotted the body in the road pulled over and put on their hazard lights to alert other drivers to the obstruction. Despite their efforts the body of Mr Cheung was struck by a Volvo car and carried for some distance along the carriageway, Mr Morse said.

Jamie Jones, from West Midlands Police, hit Warwick University student Raymond Cheung on the Coventry-bound carriageway of the A45 in the early hours of March 8 last year.

Jones, 38, carried on driving after the fatal impact, leaving the victim's body in the road to be struck by a second car, Shrewsbury Crown Court heard.

Malcolm Morse, prosecuting, told jurors that Jones was not to blame for Mr Cheung's death as the student emerged on the road just a second or two before the collision.

The inspector is charged with misconduct in a public office for failing to stop at the scene and dangerous driving. The charge of dangerous driving relates not to his driving before the collision, but to the allegation that he continued to drive with a smashed windscreen.

Mr Morse told the jury that on the morning of the collision Jones was travelling along the road, which links Birmingham and Coventry, in his BMW Series 5 at a speed just below the limit of 60mph.

He said the collision with Mr Cheung was "entirely unavoidable", explaining: "He is not criminally responsible for Raymond Cheung's death, there was nothing he could have done to avoid it."

But the prosecutor said Jones "must have known" he had hit a person and failed in his duty as a police officer when he did not pull over at the scene.

Mr Morse said: "He did not stop. There is some evidence from a taxi driver who was on the scene at the time of the collision that he actually speeded up and he drove away."

The court heard that a number of other motorists who spotted the body in the road pulled over and put on their hazard lights to alert other drivers to the obstruction. Despite their efforts the body of Mr Cheung was struck by a Volvo car and carried for some distance along the carriageway, Mr Morse said.

Source: ' Independent '

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