A 92-year old Co Antrim man who knocked down and killed schoolgirl Scarlett Rossborough has been given a suspended sentence for causing her death by dangerous driving.
At Belfast Crown Court a sentence of 10 months, which was suspended for 12 months, was imposed on John Noble Lindsay, a former RUC officer.
Due to his ailing health, Lindsay, from Prince Andrew Way in Carrickfergus, was excused from appearing in person, and attended his sentence hearing via video link. The court heard his life expectancy is less than a year.
Judge Patricia Smyth paid tribute to the eight-year-old who was struck and killed as she walked along High Street in Carrickfergus on the morning of August 9th, 2023. She also endorsed calls by the child’s family regarding the proposed “Scarlett’s Law”, which seeks a change in legislation regarding very elderly drivers in the interests of public safety.
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Scarlett, a pupil at Linn Primary School in Larne, was among a group of children and adult leaders from a local community centre summer scheme enjoying a day out to Carrick Castle.
In the moments before the fatal collision, Lindsay had parked his car in a disabled parking space. After initially parking, he was captured on CCTV exiting the vehicle and then getting back into the car. He then attempted to repark the car and began moving the vehicle backwards and forwards several times.
As the group was walking along the footpath on High Street, Lindsay’s car mounted the pavement and struck three children. Two of them were thrown into the doorway of a shop and escaped serious injury. Scarlett was trapped between the rear of Lindsay’s car and the wall of an adjacent building and died.
At the point of impact, Lindsay’s car was travelling between 18 and 21km/h, and the court heard “pedal misapplication” could have been a possible cause of the collision, as could confusion on Lindsay’s part.
Branding the case as “exceptional”, the judge said she had taken into account Lindsay’s ill-health, his “extreme” age, his “previous unblemished character” and his guilty plea to the charge.
Imposing the sentence, which she suspended “as an act of mercy”, the judge also disqualified Lindsay from driving for 12 months.
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