Man dies in Tesco car park after pensioner driver's foot 'slipped'

Daily Mirror

3 days ago

An elderly man whose foot 'slipped' and became wedged under the accelerator pedal of his jeep before hitting and killing a man in a Tesco car park has appeared in court
A man walking back to his car in a Tesco car park has died after being rammed by an elderly driver whose foot "slipped" onto the accelerator before knocking him to the ground.
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Timothy Field, 81, was the man behind the Jeep that hit 78-year-old David Lumb, running over his leg before carrying on, hitting another car at the scene.
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David's wife, Jean Lumb, who was sitting in their car at the time, initially thought her husband was okay and had just had a fall, but that all changed when she noticed blood running from his nose and head. At Caernarfon Crown Court today, Prosecutor Sion ap Mihangel said Mr and Mrs Lumb had been to Tesco in Newtown in North Wales on March 18 last year.
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Mrs Lumb had returned to their car early while Mr Lumb used the toilets. While he was on his way, Field had asked Mrs Lumb if she was about to leave so they could take the spot. The prosecutor said: "It appeared to Mrs Lumb that he [Mr Field] was anxious to park in the same spot."
He added: "She replied they would have to wait a minute as her husband was on his way." But just as Mr Lumb came walking back, tragedy would strike, and the Jeep collided into him, North Wales Live reports.
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Mr ap Mihangel said: "He was laughing and she (Mrs Lumb) did not think he was seriously injured. (But) Others at the scene were noticeably angry towards the defendant, who repeatedly said he was sorry."
When emergency services and police arrived, Field told officers at the scene that he had been looking for a disabled parking space and that his foot had become "wedged between both pedals" as his car moved forward into Mr Lumb, and that he was in shock. He fully cooperated with emergency services.
After the incident, Mr Lumb was taken to Shrewsbury Hospital for further care, but with his age and having already been on blood thinners, the harm to his left leg had caused lots of bleeding and tissue damage, leaving him in "complete agony" as his leg tissue began to die.
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The 78-year-old - described by the judge as a "quietly remarkable man" - developed sepsis 17 days later and passed away.
In a statement read in court earlier today, Mrs Lumb described her husband as a "blunt Yorkshireman with a dry sense of humour and kind". Keeping his spirits high even in the most immense pain, he even joked that he could now compete in archery in the Paralympics after the incident.
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The day of his death, she had only just left the hospital, telling him to rest up, when three hours later a nurse gave her the tragic call. She added: "When I went to the hospital to see him, he still had a smile on his face."
Despite all the hardship that Mrs Lumb had been through since the incident, she called for "forgiveness and leniency" in the judgement of Field, stating that he has now had his punishment, even consoling the defendant and insisting on not pressing any charges.
Taken aback by the rareness and strength of Mrs Lumb, the judge, Her Honour Nicola Jones, described her as having shown "resilience, compassion and forgiveness", stating it had been an honour to meet her.
Moving onto the sentencing Field, of Red Lane, Tregodva, Shropshire, was given an eight-month prison sentence suspended for a year for causing death by careless driving.
Field has since given up driving, but the judge also officially disqualified him for the next two years and he must pass an extensive retest if he wants to get behind the wheel again.