Bin lorry driver avoids jail for killing teaching assistant as she crossed the road in Yorkshire

Derek Stuart Whitworth, 54, pleaded guilty to causing the death through careless driving of Sonya Majid, 32, in July 2021 and appeared at Bradford Crown Court on Friday for sentencing.

The court heard he was driving a regular route for waste disposal firm Halifax Metals when he stopped at a red light at the Queens Road/Hanson Lane crossroads, a traffic light-controlled junction.

Yet Whitworth, of Mount Tabor in Halifax, halted when his HGV’s cab was protruding over the white stop line and into the pedestrian walkway. He then set off again when the light was on amber, ‘moments’ before it turned green.

Whitworth’s view of the crossing was impaired and he failed to sufficiently check his overview mirror, meaning he struck Miss Majid, a newlywed who worked as a support assistant at St Augustine’s Primary School, as she crossed while the red man was showing for pedestrians. She was trapped under the lorry and died at the scene.

The professional and experienced HGV driver, who has no previous convictions or endorsements, was shown on both his own wagon’s dashcam and CCTV from a nearby laundrette and takeaway approaching the stop line, which the court heard was ‘faded but visible’. His front tyres was clearly over the line in the footage.

Prosecutors argued that Whitworth’s positioning in the road was the ‘central cause’ of the collision, and that his visibility was restricted because of his actions, and Judge Jonathan Rose described the stop line’s condition as a ‘red herring’ as Whitworth had been driving the route for 18 months and would have been familiar with junctions and crossings.

Whitworth’s defence counsel argued that he had set off only a ‘fraction of a second’ too early, but Judge Rose said he did not agree with their submissions that the accident was a result of momentary inattention.

Sentencing Whitworth to 150 hours of unpaid work and imposing an 18-month community order with 30 days of rehabilitation activity, Judge Rose said: “You are a professional driver who knew the size of your vehicle. I’m satisfied that you did not check for pedestrians adequately. When you set off only moments before the light changed to green, you entered that crossing when you were not permitted to do so. It was an unlawful and potentially risky thing to do. Your road position and setting off early were significant factors.

"I acknowledge that Sonya was crossing when the lights were against her and it was unsafe to cross. She took a chance, and had she not taken such a risk she would not have had the misfortune to coincide with you.”

Adding that Whitworth had been described in references as an ‘utterly decent and hardworking man’, Judge Rose declined to disqualify him from driving on account of his employment and work he carries out for a family business.