A pedestrian who causes a cyclist to fall in front of a car is jailed | Pro IQRA News

CCTV footage shows Oriole Gray, 49, yelling at retired midwife Celia Ward to “get off the pavement” in Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire, causing her to fall into the road.

Grandmother Mrs Ward, 77, of Witton, Cambridgeshire, died after being hit by a car on 20 October 2020.

Gray, who has cerebral palsy, denied manslaughter but was found guilty after a retrial at Peterborough Crown Court.

David Ward, widower of Mrs. Ward, a retired RAF pilot, said in a statement read by Attorney-General Simon Spence KS. The clip of Celia’s final moments will haunt me forever.

“Seldom a day goes by without thinking of her and our happy life together,” he said, “but I can easily burst into tears, as I have on many occasions.”

He said they met in 1965 and enjoyed their retirement playing golf and seeing the world on cruise vacations.

“I miss her terribly and after a year and a half on my own I felt the need to sell our home of 34 years and move to a retirement village near Romsey,” he said.

He said he did it to be closer to the family, including their daughter, Jillian Hayter.

In a victim impact statement read out to the court, Ms Hayter told of her mother’s “senseless and needless death on the road without someone who loved her”.

Miranda Moore KC, mitigating Gray, said, “It took a moment but it affected so many.”

She said that Gray’s “current view is that where the sidewalks are too narrow for cyclists…they should commute on the road”.

“There was no intent to cause harm or apparent risk of harm,” she said.

She said that witnesses said that Gray “looked childlike” and that she lived in private, air-conditioned accommodation.

In a statement released by the police, Ms Hayter added: “Celia Ward was my mother, mother-in-law and beloved grandmother to my son, but most importantly, the love of my father’s life.

“Her untimely death turned our world upside down and there isn’t a day that goes by that I don’t wish to pick up the phone to ask her advice, celebrate special occasions in our lives or just tell her how much I love her.

“It’s easy to say what a wonderful mom she was…she was so passionate about her family and was always there to help and support us.

“She was of a make-and-fix generation, who kept a clean house and always put others first.

“Her death has marred what should have been one of the most enjoyable times for us as a family.

“We can never forget the past two and a half years, but now is the time to start remembering the wonderful memories and times we had with my mom, and hopefully find some peace.”