Dangerous driver jailed for seriously injuring charity shop manager in Halifax

A judge was today shown dashcam footage from another vehicle which captured the moment 35-year-old Sharaz Mohammed pulled out of a line of heavy lunchtime traffic on Queens Road and tried to overtake.

But seconds later the Audi S3 he was driving crashed into RSPCA shop manager Erica Davies as she tried to cross the road on her lunch break.

Prosecutor Duncan Ritchie told Bradford Crown Court that the dashcam footage appeared to show the defendant becoming frustrated by the slow moving traffic.

He said Miss Davies had crossed between two stationary cars in the line of traffic, but as she stepped out the Audi approached at speed and struck her.

“She was thrown into the air by the collision and landed heavily on the road,” said Mr Ritchie.

“The defendant, apparently without pausing, drove off.”

Mohammed, of Gerrard Street, Halifax, handed himself in to police about an hour after the collision, but he claimed that he drove off in panic after Miss Davies ran out in front of him.

As a result of the collision in April Miss Davies suffered “serious and extensive” injuries including a broken pelvis, broken ribs and a broken ankle.

Mr Ritchie said she was detained in hospital for three weeks and had to use a hospital bed even when she was back in her own home.

He said Miss Davies’ mother had to move in to help with her care and she suffered many sleepless nights as a result of the external metal frame which had been fitted to deal with the broken pelvis.

Mr Ritchie said eight months on she still suffered constant pain and now had a limp.

Mohammed, who had previous convictions for failing to stop after an accident in 2004 and drink-driving in 2007, pleaded guilty to causing serious injury by dangerous driving and failing to stop.

Solicitor advocate Ashok Khullar, for Mohammed, said he now faced his first ever prison sentence and that would have an impact on his family.

“But that is but a fraction of the significant impact that his driving has had upon the victim of these offences,” he added.

“He is in no doubt as to the consequences of his actions.

“Although the driving was undoubtably dangerous it was a very short duration...a matter of seconds. An impulsive decision made on his part..a foolish decision.”

Jailing Mohammed tJudge David Hatton QC said the appalling piece of driving he had engaged in was not only selfish but thoughtless.

“You demonstrated a flagrant disregard for the rules of the road,” the judge told Mohammed.

“You relegated the interests and safety of others in favour of your interests as you perceived them and you even blamed, and from what I have read to some extent you still continue to blame, the unfortunate victim of your driving.”

Judge Hatton said the driving off after the collision and Mohammed’s previous convictions were aggravating features of the case.

Mohammed will now be banned from driving for just over three years and he will have to take an extended re-test at the end of that disqualification before he can lawfully drive on the roads again.