Man cleared of causing fatal crash near Sleaford

A motorist accused of causing a fatal crash was cleared by a jury of causing death by careless driving.

David Teasdale was travelling to visit a friend in Lincoln County Hospital when his silver Vauxhall Vectra collided with a green Kawasaki motorcycle on the A15 near Holdingham roundabout on Thursday, July 5, 2018.

Teasdale was alleged to have been responsible for the collision, in which motorcyclist Peter Howard died and his partner and pillion passenger Claire Rowbotom suffered life-changing injuries. An inquest was opened into Mr Howard’s death on July 19.

The jury at Lincoln Crown Court took just over an hour to return a not guilty verdict at the conclusion of a four day trial.

During the trial the motorist driving in front of Teasdale’s Vauxhall Vectra said that the car was on its correct side of the road and the motorcycle had crossed the double white lines into the wrong carriageway. His passenger said she believed that both vehicles may have been on their correct side of the road but each was very close to the centre.

Lincolnshire Police accident investigator PC Godfrey Barlow said that tyre marks found on the road surface indicated Teasdale was at fault.

A defence expert accident investigator said the marks were consistent with a tyre sliding sideways rather than forward and he could not agree with the complete prosecution interpretation.

Teasdale, the court was told, had passed his test less than 12 months before the collision. He has not driven since and does not intend to drive again.

He did not give evidence to the jury but during a police interview he told officers: “The motorcycle was two or three seconds away when I saw it.

“I think I was in the middle of my carriageway. That’s my normal driving.

“The motorcycle was all over the place. I don’t think he was in control of the bike at the time.”

Teasdale, 28, of Sharpe Road, Grantham, denied causing death by careless driving as a result of the collision on July 5, 2018.