A motorist who "drove through" two cyclists out training, killing one of them, has been jailed for 2½ years. He first said he did not see the cyclists and hit them from behind but then later changed his story when video recorded from one of the rider's bike-mounted cameras was produced.
Arthur Robert McGrillen then tried to say the two cyclists - members of Irish club Lanterne Rouge CC - were to blame because of the way they were cycling. He said while being questioned they were "too wide on the road". After initially claiming he did not see the cyclists he then appeared to suggest he saw them "not riding in single file" before adding "I went to go around them and they bumped on top of my car''.
The 74-year-old appeared at Downpatrick Crown Court, sitting in Belfast, via video link from Maghaberry Prison. He initially denied the charges but last May be pleaded guilty to causing the death of Aidan Fitzpatrick by dangerous driving, and causing grievous bodily injury to Ralph Mills. Both victims were taken from the crash scene to Royal Victoria Hospital Belfast but Mr Fitzpatrick died from his injuries three days later.
Advertisement
The fatal crash happened on the Killyleagh Road in Downpatrick at 2pm on Sunday, October 20th, 2019, as the two cyclists were riding towards Killyleagh. The court was told McGrillen, Catherine St, Killyleagh, "ploughed into" Mr Fitzpatrick and had caused "unbearable pain" to his wife and their five children. The jailed man also drove his black Mercedes C-Class into Mr Ralph, who was seriously injured and left in "constant pain, with survivors' guilt and a joyless outlook on life''.
Related News
Ciaran Murphy KC, for the prosecution, told the court McGrillen "drove through the cyclists without making any attempt to avoid them". McGrillen suffered a stroke in 2017 and when he renewed his licence in 2018 he failed to declare it on his paperwork. He answered 'no' when asked if he suffered from any illnesses, including a stroke, which may impact his entitlement to drive.
The court was told this misleading information he supplied was an aggravating factor in the crash as McGrillen would not have been allowed to drive, and would have been off the road, had he been honest about his medical condition.
Judge Geoffrey Miller KC said McGrillen had "taken no steps whatsoever to avoid a full-on, nose-to-tail collision". He had "ploughed straight into them" in a crash recorded on Mr Mills's rear-facing camera and on dashcam footage recorded by a passing ambulance.
"This amounts to an exceptionally bad piece of driving which resulted in a fatality and serious injury. I am satisfied that this amounts to an aggravating feature of dangerousness in this case," Judge Miller said. "He first blamed the cyclists and claimed he was not at fault. Had it not been shown in Mr Mills's camera footage, he might have persisted in this lie."
As well as being jailed for 2½ years, McGrillen will spend 2½ years post-released on a supervised licence and was banned from driving for life.
