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07
Aug
Taxi driver sentenced after seriously injuring woman in Parliament Street collision
A taxi driver left a woman with a fractured pelvis and a bleed on the brain after colliding with her on Harrogate’s Parliament Street.
Shahid Hussain, 47, of Cameron Grove in Bradford, appeared before Harrogate Magistrates Court on Thursday (August 6) for a sentencing hearing after he admitted causing serious injury by careless driving.
Sarah Tyrer, prosecuting, told the court that the 47-year-old was driving a black Toyota down Parliament Street at around 11.45pm on the night of September 27 last year. He was working as a taxi driver.
Ms Tyrer said the named victim was crossing the road from The Ginnel towards the former Debenhams building, where she was planning to get into an Uber.
Harrogate Magistrates Court.
Hussain, who was travelling along Parliament Street towards Ripon Road to pick up a customer, veered from one lane into the other and collided with the victim.
Ms Tyrer said the woman had been out with friends and was wearing a white dress. She added that it was the prosecution’s case that she was visible to Hussain.
She said:
She was there to be seen for about six seconds prior to the collision taking place.
In an eye witness account, which was read aloud in court, a named witness said it was a busy Saturday night in Harrogate and it had been raining.
However, the witness, who was stood outside Revolution de Cuba bar on Parliament Street, said traffic was “minimal” and despite the conditions the victim was “clearly visible” as it was "well lit" in the area.
They said:
As she [the victim] was about to step onto the pavement, it [the collision] caused a massive bang and she was flung up into the air.
Ms Tyrer said the victim suffered a fractured back, elbow and pelvis as well as a bleed on the brain.
‘I feel like I have lost a spark within me’
In a victim impact statement, which Ms Tyrer read in court, the woman said she had been crossing the road to get an Uber after being out with friends in Harrogate.
“The next thing I remember I was waking up in Leeds General Infirmary in extreme pain,” the victim said.
She added that the injuries left her unable to work for some time and she struggled to support her family financially.
The victim said she now suffers from extreme fatigue, struggles to retain information due to the brain injury and has "lost confidence" in herself.
She said:
To this day, I have been unable to go near Parliament Street and I feel like I have lost a spark within me.
Sam Sharpe, defending, said Hussain had pleaded guilty at the first opportunity and was “extremely remorseful”. He added that he had no previous convictions.
Mr Sharpe said the 47-year-old had a “momentary lapse in concentration” after a notification came through on his phone which he was using to navigate to his next stop.
He said:
This is not an intentional act. It is simply a momentary lapse in concentration.
He thinks about it [the collision] every day and has to live with the fact that the lady has to live with the injuries.
Mr Sharpe said Hussain lost his job after the collision and has been forced to take out a short-term loan to cover his mortgage. He added that the defendant was now in receipt of Universal Credit and has been unable to find work.
The defence said:
He wants to get back and move forward with his life. He wants to work and provide for his daughter, who will be going to dentistry school.
Magistrates sentenced Hussain to a 12-month community order, which includes 200 hours of unpaid work.
He was also banned from driving for 12 months and ordered to undertake an extended retest at the end of the ban.
Hussain was also ordered to pay a £114 victim’s surcharge and £85 in court costs.
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