E-bike rider who caused crash in Rochester avoids prison
Clifford Cage left 91-year-old Jim Blackwood with injuries which proved to be fatal
Last updated 20 hours ago
A man who killed a 91-year-old great-grandfather as he struck him riding his electric bike on the pavement on his way to work in Kent has avoided an immediate jail term.
Clifford Cage from Rochester was sentenced to 15 months’ imprisonment, suspended for two years, for the manslaughter of Jim Blackwood at Maidstone Crown Court on Wednesday.
Mr Blackwood was taking his bins out in City Way in the town, when he was struck on July 6 2023.
The veteran was taken to hospital but his health deteriorated and he died three months later on October 13.
It was accepted, despite his age and frailty, he would not have died in the way he did, in the manner he did, if he had not been hit, prompting Cage to be charged with manslaughter in the case the Crown Prosecution Service said is a “legal first”.
Sentencing Cage, Judge Julian Smith said Mr Blackwood “suffered significantly” in his final months, adding of the sentence: “That is no measure of a man’s life but is of Mr Cage’s culpability.
“No doubt he should not have been riding on that path in that way.”
Following the sentencing on Wednesday, Cage and Mr Blackwood’s daughter, Christine White, hugged in the courtroom.
Maidstone Crown Court heard how Cage told police in a voluntary interview in July that he began cycling on the pavement along City Way, Rochester, after two near misses with cars when he was riding on the road.
On the day of the crash, the 50-year-old said he was not “peddling mad” and estimated at around 12mph, and told officers he did not see Mr Blackwood, describing how he stepped out from behind a bush and he had no time to stop.
The court heard the tree was overgrown and Mr Blackwood’s family had complained about it on an earlier date.
Following the incident, Cage stayed at the scene and called 999, and did “express genuine remorse”, the court heard.
He told Mr Blackwood’s daughter Ms White, that he sweeps the pavement at City Way every Wednesday and offered to trim the bush back himself.
Cage initially denied manslaughter but later pleaded guilty in October last year.
The court heard a statement from Jim Blackwood’s wife of 72 years, Hanni Blackwood, who said she misses him all the time, adding: “There’s not a day I don’t think of him”.
She said as a former Army man, Mr Blackwood had served in Malaya and Northern Ireland “but was killed outside his front door”.
Ms White told of the “huge emotional toll” the incident has had on her and said she generally “feels angry all the time”.
“It’s painful to see mum suffering so much, she really doesn’t want to be here without her partner of 72 years,” she said.
“I miss dad terribly, I was a real daddy’s girl.”
Defending Cage, Danny Moore KC said the grandfather stayed at the scene and “did what he could to help” and that “he’s a decent human being”.
He said: “He knows a moment of careless driving has resulted in tragedy.
“The knowledge his actions have caused the death of another human being is something he will carry with him for the rest of his life.”
The judge also ordered for Cage to carry out 15 days of rehabilitative activity requirement and 180 hours of unpaid work.
The CPS believes the case is the first of its kind for a conviction of manslaughter connected to cycling on the pavement.
Speaking to the Press Association, district crown prosecutor Matt Beard said Cage’s e-bike was not powerful enough for laws for driving offences, such as death by dangerous driving, to apply in this case.
Instead there was a gap between the lesser offence of the Victorian law from 1861 of wanton and furious driving, which offered sentencing powers for judges up to two years, or manslaughter which holds a maximum penalty of life imprisonment.
“Our view was that yes, in this case, it really did meet that threshold to pass the public interest test to make sure that we do charge manslaughter,” he said.
Mr Beard said in this case Cage knew the area, he had ridden on that particular road in the past and had near misses, and so chose to cycle on the pavement instead, “to take himself away from one danger and effectively move that danger to somebody else”.
He said: “So the takeaway from that is that cyclists, whether you’re on an e-bike or on a normal push bike, to be aware of the risks of others. This is a very tragic incident.
“Some people might just say … it’s just an ‘unfortunate accident’. It’s not, it’s an illegal act that had been carried out. It’s not just an unfortunate accident, (it was) wholly unavoidable by going on the road.”
Joe Pullen, Senior Crown Prosecutor from the Crown Prosecution Service, said:
“This case, which is a legal first, tragically highlights how exceptionally dangerous it can be to cycle on the pavement and the reason it is illegal.
“James Blackwood went from being fully mobile before the collision to being bedbound and immobile afterwards, eventually resulting in his death.
“Clifford Cage has made it clear that he never intended to cause the victim any harm, but the risk he took in cycling on an e-bike on the pavement should have been obvious to him.
“Instead, Cage admitted he had never thought about the danger he could pose to others. It was that simple lack of thought that led to James’ death.
“We hope today’s sentencing brings some comfort to James’ family and sends a strong message to everyone about stopping this potentially deadly practice on our footpaths.”
Following the sentencing, Christine White, the daughter of Mr Blackwood, called for the sentence to have a wider impact and said it should affect every cyclist in the UK.
“No longer can cyclists decide that they can leave the road and ride on our pavements, endangering pedestrians with impunity, and the message needs to get out there and into the public consciousness,” she said.
“Everyone has to realise that it is illegal to go off road, and that illegality will be punished.”
The 68-year-old, who is now full-time caring for her mother since her father’s death, is calling for the Government to re-think the minimum age required to ride e-bikes, raising it from 14 to 16 years old.
She also believes training and possibly a licence is needed for those who do not have a driving licence.
And she urged “unsafe cyclists” to think twice about their journeys, adding: “Please make our streets safer for everyone, and do not cycle or ride e-scooters on pavements or in pedestrian areas.”
Ms White said: “With the introduction of electric bikes, walking on our pavements and through our public spaces has become dangerous to the point of becoming a lottery.
“Deciding to go for a walk or to go shopping should not make one a potential victim of a vehicle which cannot be heard as it approaches.”
Speaking after the sentencing, Ms White said every day we make decisions that impact on our lives.
“When Mr Cage decided for whatever reason, to ride his bicycle on the pavement, he made a decision to break the law – he must now live with and deal with the consequences of that decision for the rest of his life, as sadly, must we,” she said.
Defending Cage, Danny Moore KC said the grandfather stayed at the scene and “did what he could to help” and that “he’s a decent human being”.
He said: “The knowledge his actions have caused the death of another human being is something he will carry with him for the rest of his life.”
Following the sentencing, Kent Police’s detective constable Sam Sylvester said: “This is a truly tragic incident that should never have happened.
“This case highlights the seriousness of driving or riding vehicles on public footpaths and pavements; one wrong move can have life changing consequences.”