Case study: Jenkins, 2012
Relevance of this case
This illustrates our responsibility to the care of people we don’t know, who don’t work for us or with us. In particular, organisations should plan where their own vehicles and other relevant vehicles will park.
Not from this case, but could the driver of this white van also end up in jail for parking like this on a narrow road outside an infants school? Note, there is no pavement on the otherside.
Events on the day
Raymond Jenkins was a delivery driver. On 6 December 2010 he was sent to make a delivery to premises off the A68 in County Durham. Other vehicles were blocking the entrance, so Jenkins parked his lorry on the A68 near a right-hand bend. The road was a single-carriage way, with double white lines prohibiting movement across the lane.
Jenkins switched on his hazard lights and left his engine running. During the next ten minutes, while Jenkins was in the premises, many vehicles had to cross the double white lines to get past his vehicle. At least one had to make an emergency stop to avoid hitting the lorry.
Peter Kemp was driving a van at between 50 – 60 mph. Sadly, he didn’t see the lorry in time so hit the back of it, and died at the scene.
The case
Jenkins was charged with causing death by careless driving – an interesting term given he wasn’t driving at the time. His defence team tried to use this as part of their argument, alongside the position that putting on his hazard lights was a “reasonable precaution.” But as he drove the lorry into the dangerous parking position, and the accident shows the lights were not sufficient, he was convicted.
The judgement also pointed out that the sun was low in the sky, and since Jenkins had driven in the same direction as the van driver for one and a half miles before he stopped, it should have been obvious to him that visibility made this an unsafe place to leave his vehicle.
Sentence: 2-year jail sentence reduced to 15 months on appeal, and two-year driving ban, with an extended driving test required.
Although the sentence was reduced, the appeal was otherwise turned down, since the offence is “causing death by careless driving”, not “causing death while driving carelessly”.
References
The full case Jenkins [2012] EWCA Crim 2909
More case studies are listed in Appendix 1 by theme or Appendix 1 by date.
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