A cop charged with dangerous driving broke down in tears as she told how she was “momentarily too late to react” when a young cyclist veered in front of her motor during a chase. But Constable Kayleigh Simpson was accused of trying to be “a hero” by attempting to apprehend a violent domestic abuser, who she believed was riding the push bike, on her own.
The officer had decided to 'keep eyes' on the ‘suspect’, who was at the centre of a major police manhunt in Glenrothes, Fife, having earlier been found with a ‘kill kit’ in his car. She followed the masked cyclist onto a footpath near Auchmuty High School, after they failed to stop when signalled to do so by her and another officer in a separate vehicle.
But the rider was later found to be a 15-year-old schoolboy, who matched the physical description of the wanted stalker Kevin Spratley. The youth ended up suffering minor injuries after the back wheel of his bike connected with the front bumper of Simpson’s marked patrol vehicle as they travelled at roughly five to 10 mph.
Recalling the moment she realised she was about to hit the bicycle as it moved to the right hand side of the foot path, Simpson said: “I had no intention of knocking that boy off his bike. We were both travelling at approximately the same speed and I was aware that he was close.
“The boy looked over his right shoulder and that’s when I realised he was going to move to the right. When I realised this was happening, I initiated my brakes. I was momentarily too late to react. Subconsciously, I hadn’t intended to get so close but that’s what happened.
"I thought that ever so slight contact had been made with the tyre because he was in front of my vehicle. I would say it was more of a nudge because his bike continued for a further distance - a good couple of car lengths - before there was a slight wobble, he lost control and toppled over to the right hand side.
“He didn’t come off the bike at any point. I stopped my vehicle but I was very much aware that I could be dealing with Mr Spratley. I exited my vehicle and I shouted to him to stay where he was, to let me see his hands and to pull his snood down. I didn’t immediately approach him because I wasn’t sure who I was going to be dealing with.
“He then got to his feet and I immediately saw that it wasn’t the man who we had been looking for. My next priority was to ensure the welfare of the boy… and I conveyed him home. I asked him why he had made off and he told me he had been with his friends and had been smoking cannabis. The information that I had at the time [about Kevin Spratley] was my justification about going after the push bike”.
She added that she had carried out a “dynamic risk assessment” to ensure the safety of the cyclist and any other members of the public who may have been on the deserted footpath. Defence solicitor Pamela Rodgers asked her client if she would do the same thing again if she could go back in time, with the officer tearing up while saying "no".
Asked if she considered the incident as a formal pursuit, Simpson replied: “No. I’m not pursuit trained so there wouldn’t be a reason for me to initiate one. In my mind, this was not a pursuit. There was no intended collison. I deemed it to be safe. I didn’t intend for that to happen. At no point did I intend to make contact with him. I decreased the speed of my vehicle but obviously not enough.”
Under cross examination, fiscal depute Jill Currie said to Simpson: “You wanted to be the person to bring him (Spratley) in? You wanted to be the hero in this scenario?” Simpson replied: “No. I’m not in a position to be able to fight a man of his stature on my own. There was no reason for me to actually injure a suspect.”
She added that apprehending the violent suspect was a “collective goal” of all the officers hunting him that evening after he had made threats to his ex-partner.
Experienced collision investigator George Gilfillan told the court he didn’t believe Simpson’s driving amounted to dangerous driving. He explained: “The conclusion that I came to was that if Ms Simpson was an ordinary member of the public, there would be no way I would expect her to drive on that footpath.
“Would I expect a police vehicle out on patrol to do it? That wouldn’t surprise me. Had she stopped and the said cyclist transpired to be the person they thought it was and he had carried out a dastardly deed, there would have been criticism of her and the police letting the public down again.
“It was with the best of intentions that she decided to do what she did. If you’re looking for perfection, you could point the finger of blame at her but we don’t live in a perfect world.”
When asked about the speed the police motor was travelling at, he added: “If the speed had been higher, I have no doubt the police vehicle would have driven over the pedal cycle.” The trial in front of Sheriff Alison McKay continues.
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