Injured Crash Victims Speak Out As Driver, Linford Christie, Is Convicted
21/07/2011
A party of three wedding guests, including the bride and groom, who were left injured when their taxi collided with a car driven by former Olympic sprinter Linford Christie, have spoken out after the athlete received a fine and a 15-month driving ban.
Christie had been facing a charge of dangerous driving, which can carry a sentence of up to two years in prison, after driving on the wrong side of the A413 in Chalfont St Peter when the accident occurred.
But the 51-year-old was found guilty of the lesser charge of careless driving at Aylesbury Crown Court, much to the disappointment of the victims who suffered serious injuries following the accident.
Groom, Peter Ashton (58) suffered whiplash, a punctured lung and four broken ribs during the collision whilst his bride, Claire Lloyd-Ashton (43), suffered bruising to her chest, pelvis and legs as well as soft tissue damage to both knees. Taxi driver, Naeem Akhtar, was also seriously injured in the head-on collision and his Mercedes E220 minicab was written off.
The bride’s uncle, Michael Burt, (61) from Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, who was left with serious head and facial injuries as a result of the collision, said: “I’m very disappointed at the outcome. I have to live with the serious injuries that Christie caused. I suffered multiple fractures and damage to my face, which were so severe that I now have several metal plates holding my skull together.”
Claire, Peter and Michael had been returning to a nearby hotel after their evening wedding reception at the Merlin’s Cave pub in Chalfont St Giles, shortly before midnight on Saturday 8th May 2010 when the accident happened on the A413, between Chalfont St Peter and Chalfont St Giles, Bucks.
Road accident legal specialists at Irwin Mitchell Solicitors, who represent Mr Burt along with the bride and groom, Claire and Peter Ashton, who were also injured in the accident, have confirmed that separate civil motor accident claims against Christie are ongoing.
Claire commented: “Whilst we have many happy memories of the wedding day, it has been tainted by the accident and our wedding night was completely ruined. Instead of spending the first night of our married lives at a nearby hotel where champagne and roses were waiting for us, we spent it in A&E.”
Kate Campbell, a solicitor with law firm Irwin Mitchell, who specialises in serious injuries involving road traffic accidents, said: “Our clients have suffered both physical and mental trauma as a result of the collision. Mr Burt in particular, was very seriously injured. He spent almost four weeks in hospital undergoing reconstructive surgery to his face and recovering from multiple fractures to his hip, leg and spine. He still bears the physical scars of the collision and is likely to require further treatment in the future.
“Now that today’s criminal prosecution has concluded, we hope that the defendant’s lawyers will work with us to resolve the civil action as quickly as possible to minimise any further distress to Mr Burt and Mr & Mrs Ashton.”
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