Student faces court in Longridge death crash trial

2:02pm Tuesday 6th May 2008

A JURY has heard how a student lost control of his car and collided with an oncoming taxi, killing his friend.

Matthew Hesketh, 18, died as a result of massive injuries in the crash on Preston Road, Longridge.

He was in the rear of a Peugeot car driven by University of Central Lancashire student and part-time chef Adam Catterall.

The Preston Crown Court jury heard that it happened on a cold February night last year and the weather was on the verge of frost but dry.

Reports had stated that the stretch of road was below par with a certain amount of wear and tear, and was due to be re-surfaced in the summer of 2007.

Catterall, 19, of Mill Lane, Goosnargh , denies causing the death of Mr Hesketh, from Preston, on February 3 last year by driving the car dangerously.

Mr Mark Lamberty, prosecuting, told the court that the accident happened just after midnight near Ann Forshaws dairy.

Catterall was driving from Longridge to Preston with two friends - one of them Mr Hesketh, who was also a student.

Catterall and the other passenger - who was not wearing a seat belt - were also injured.

He said that there was a gentle bend out of Longridge, adding "To use a vernacular, he lost it."

The car skidded onto the opposite side of the road and hit the taxi, he said.

Mr Lamberty said the road went from a 30 mph zone to a 50 mph zone and Catterall overtook two cars.

He described how one of the drivers described how Catterall was "itching to get past him."

Mr Lamberty said Catterall must have been doing 60 to overtake the car, which was travelling at about 50.

Interviewed by police a week later, Catterall said he could remember overtaking a car and getting back into lane, the court was told.

But he said he later the car skidded and he was not sure how it happened, the court was told.

In a second interview in March he told police the back end skidded out and he could not recall his speed, the court was told.

Taxi driver Thomas Kirby told the jury he was working in the evening of February 2 and into February 3 last year. He was travelling towards Longridge doing between 40 to 45 mph. He described the bend near the dairy.

"Suddenly I saw head lights appear on my side of the road - all this happened in the twinkling of an eye," said Mr Kirby.

"All of a sudden I am applying my breaks and stop," he told the jury.

I almost got the vehicle to a standstill when the impact happened. He hit the front end of my cab with the back end of his vehicle," said Mr Kirby.

Mr Kirby said he was taken out of his cab on a stretcher and taken to hospital. It later transpired he had compression of his spine and a spinal cord injury resulting in him needing a walking stick and driving an automatic car and he had not gone back to work.

Cross-examined by Mr Simon Newell, defending, Mr Kirby said the weather was fine and cold. He said:"The last thing I saw was the vehicle coming to me head on and at the last moment turned side on. His back end thumped by vehicle,"

said Mr Kirby The trial is expected to last a week.

Proceeding.

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