Police Officer Sentenced to Prison After Fatal Collision During Emergency Call
A police officer who killed a pensioner while responding to a high-priority emergency call has been jailed for 27 months. PC Mark Roberts, 57, crashed into a motorbike after driving through a red light that had been on 'stop' for six seconds.
Tragic Incident on Gateshead Flyover
The collision occurred in July 2022 on a flyover over the A1 in Dunston, Gateshead, near the MetroCentre. Roberts was responding to a grade-one emergency call about a five-week-old baby who was choking. The ambulance service had requested police assistance, indicating paramedics believed they couldn't reach the infant before officers.
Roberts was driving a marked police car with blue lights and sirens activated when he approached the junction. Data showed he was traveling at 43mph as he neared the traffic lights and was moving at approximately 25mph at the moment of impact.
Devastating Consequences for Pensioner Couple
The crash involved Ronald and Muriel Pinkney's motorbike on a road with a 30mph speed limit. Mrs Pinkney, 74, suffered fatal head and neck injuries and died at the scene. Her husband sustained a brain bleed and multiple fractures in the collision.
During sentencing at Teesside Crown Court, Judge Francis Laird KC stated that while Roberts was entitled to use exemptions from speed limits and red light restrictions, 'these exemptions must be exercised cautiously and appropriately.' The judge noted Roberts' speed was too high as he approached the junction and that he failed to properly observe the Pinkneys despite them being visible.
Officer's Background and Family Response
The court heard Roberts had led a 'remarkable life of public service', having served in the Army in Yugoslavia, Afghanistan and Iraq before joining the police force. In mitigation, the court was told Roberts was 'heartbroken' by the ordeal.
Remarkably, the Pinkneys' daughter Dawn Hunter-Pinkney said in a statement that the family 'don't blame the officer for what happened' and expressed understanding about why he was driving as he was. She stated: 'We don't want him to go to prison for doing his job. We do accept this is a very tragic accident with a very tragic outcome, but sending the officer to prison won't bring mam back.'
Legal Proceedings and Police Response
Roberts was convicted of causing death by dangerous driving and causing serious injury by dangerous driving. In addition to the prison sentence, he was banned from driving for five years and one month.
Andy Hill, assistant chief constable of Northumbria Police, expressed sincere condolences to the Pinkney family, stating: 'On behalf of Northumbria Police, I wish to express my sincere condolences for your loss and our thoughts very much continue to be with you at this time.' He acknowledged that while officers respond to emergencies daily, 'tragedies of this nature are extremely rare.'
Roberts has been suspended from the force following the incident. The Independent Office for Police Conduct investigated the collision, and prosecutors argued Roberts should have approached the junction more slowly, with jurors told that Northumbria Police's guidance states risk taking, even for a 'noble cause', is not justified.
