A woman has avoided jail after pleading guilty to causing death by careless driving. Patricia Goulden, 52, has been spared jail after being convicted of killing cyclist Louise Harrott, 43.
Goulden, from north Wales, hit Ms Harrott as she was riding along Hudderfield Road in Oldham, greater Manchester last March. Her black Range Rover turned across the path of Ms Harrott, who was wearing a helmet and full cycling equipment at the time, NorthWalesLive reports.
Ms Harrott suffered major injuries from being hit and subsequently passed away. Her passing has been particularly difficult for her 17-year-old son and her mother, Doreen McGiven, to comprehend, the court heard. For more court reports, go here.
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Defending, Peter Grogan said Goulden, of Holywell in Flintshire, had a "deep sense of remorse" and regret over what happened on Wednesday, March 24, 2021. He said Goulden was familiar with the road, and at the time was driving from Royton to her home in when she displayed a "momentary lapse of concentration." He described the incident as "inexplicable" and confirmed that in her 30 years of driving, she had never received any more than three penalty points, which she accrued when she was just 21.
Passing sentence at Manchester Magistrates' Court, district judge Mark Hadfield told the mum of one: "The consequences of your actions will remain with Louise's family and friends forever. Of course you will have to live with the consequences of your actions. This tragic accident was caused by a lapse of concentration by you. However there is no explanation or reason why you failed to see Louise."
The judge said he accepted Goulden's remorse was genuine and described Goulden as being of "positive good character", having no previous convictions. He sentenced her to 26 weeks in prison, suspended for 12 months. Goulden, of Fron Park Road, Holywell, was also ordered to carry out 200 hours of unpaid work and banned from driving for two years.
Paying tribute to her daughter, Louise Harrott's mother Doreen McGivern said referred to Louise as her "best friend" and said she was a dedicated cyclist and keen member of Saddleworth Clarion Cycling Club. "My beautiful daughter Louise died doing the thing she loved," she said. "But no greater love had she than the love for her family. She was my rock. She was a daughter in a million.
"If I were to list all the loving and caring things she had done for us all in her short life, I would be reading this forever."
Before her passing, Ms Harrott had studied Law at university and gone on to work in administration at Manchester College, as well as for the family business, running Barton Villa hotel in Dukinfield, Greater Manchester.
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