A grieving husband says he is forever haunted by the sound of his wife's final scream after she was struck and killed by a runaway van on a peaceful golf course during a police pursuit.
A peaceful round shattered by tragedy
Suzanne Cherry, 62, was lining up a shot at Aston Wood Golf Club in Little Aston, Sutton Coldfield, on April 11 when her life was brutally cut short. Cowboy builder John McDonald, 51, veered off the road and onto the fairway in a grey Nissan van while being chased by police.
Her husband, Clint Harrison, who was standing just yards away, described witnessing her "fragile body shatter" before his eyes. "Her scream just before the impact haunts me every moment of every day," he said in a statement to the court.
A reckless 13-minute police pursuit
The court at Worcester Crown Court heard the pursuit lasted 12 minutes and 41 seconds. Dashcam footage showed McDonald driving at speeds up to 70mph on the wrong side of the road, running red lights, mounting pavements, and narrowly missing pedestrians.
During the chase, the van struck five vehicles, including one carrying an 11-month-old baby. McDonald also repeatedly reversed into a police car, ramming it 11 times before fleeing again.
He turned into the golf club entrance just after 10:24am and headed up a grassy hill. Suzanne, searching for her ball near a stream, was hit at about 41mph despite McDonald braking seconds earlier. "The last Clint saw of her was a flash of brown hair. The last he heard was her scream," a prosecutor told the court.
Justice served and a family's ongoing pain
McDonald, of Bloxwich, pleaded guilty to causing death by dangerous driving and was sentenced to 13 years and six months in prison. Under UK rules, he could be eligible for release after serving two-thirds, around eight years.
His son, Johnny McDonald, 23, and associate Brett Delaney, 35, were jailed for 32 months and 28 months respectively for their roles in a related roofing fraud conspiracy that targeted the elderly and vulnerable.
Suzanne, a mother of three from Aldridge, suffered catastrophic injuries and died in hospital four days after the crash, the day before her 63rd birthday. Her first grandchild was born weeks after her death.
Her brother, retired fire officer Adrian Cherry, 60, said the killer "deserves to be in prison for the rest of his life". Mr Harrison said the men "valued their freedom more than her right to live".
The family's anguish was compounded when the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority rejected a claim, ruling the incident did not meet the definition of a violent crime—a decision Mr Harrison branded "outrageous". He is pursuing a civil claim against the van's insurers.
Mr Harrison added that he has been unable to return to a golf course since the tragedy. "I can't even keep my golf clubs at our house," he said.
