Porsche-driving property developer jailed for nine months for killing cyclist, 36, on Yorkshire road

Andrew Jackson was 36 and had left his two young children for their afternoon nap when he went for a lockdown bike ride in May 2020.

James Michael Bryan, 37, struck him on the A168 between Rabbit Hill Park and Allerton Park, near Boroughbridge, and the successful accountant died at the scene.

Bryan, of St Mary’s Avenue, Harrogate, denied causing death by dangerous driving and was found not guilty by a jury at York Crown Court following a trial, but admitted the lesser charge of causing death by careless driving and was convicted.

Judge Simon Hickey rejected his claim that Mr Jackson had swerved into the car’s path due to crosswinds, finding it ‘inconceivable’ that the cyclist had moved around 4ft to the right, and attributed the cause of the collision to Bryan being ‘tired and hungover’ after staying up late.

The court was told that Bryan had spent the previous night drinking at a friend’s house before he set off from Cheshire the morning of the collision to drive to Harrogate to drop shopping off for his parents, who were shielding.

Cocaine traces were also found in his system, though he was not over the limit for either drugs or alcohol.

He accepted that he pulled into a lay-by shortly before the collision to use his mobile phone, but claims not to have been distracted by it when he hit Mr Jackson on a straight stretch of road where visibility was at least 500 metres in broad daylight. His speed was given at 48mph at the time.

Regular cyclist Mr Jackson was wearing a helmet and his bike had recently been serviced. He died from head trauma after being thrown onto the Porsche’s windscreen.

A police reconstruction found that the bike was not positioned in the middle of the road when the collision occurred, as Bryan had claimed

He accepted careless driving on the basis that he did not give Mr Jackson enough room when passing him.

The court heard statements from his parents, Paul and Ruth, and wife Jenny, who described the impact on the family and his children Henry and Hattie, who were just three and one when their father died.

Mr Jackson grew up in Leyburn, his parents’ only child, and excelled academically at Richmond School before winning a place to study economics at Durham University. As a graduate he joined accountants KPMG as an auditor in their Newcastle office, but later moved to a financial services firm in Harrogate and bought a house in Hunsingore, near Wetherby.

His father Paul described how he and Andrew loved to make and fly model planes together, but he has given up the hobby since Andrew’s death as it was a ‘constant reminder’ of what he had lost.

"After I was diagnosed with cancer in 2016, Andrew supported me through it. I could rely on him. We have lost our only child and nothing can ever be the same. I would confide in him and tell him things I couldn’t tell anyone else. His children will never have real memories of him and we are devastated. He was our whole world and he has been taken from us.”

His widow Jenny Jackson told the court that they had spent the morning of his death baking bread together before Andrew went cycling after the children had been put to bed.

"I told him I loved him and they were the last words he heard. My whole future has gone. We had so many plans and dreams. We brought out the best in each other and his death has left a gaping wound in my side. He was kind, wonderful and generous and there is so much wasted potential.”

Mrs Jackson had to give up her job as a pharmacist on the neonatal ward at Leeds Teaching Hospitals and was diagnosed with ulcerative colitis triggered by the trauma of the incident.

"I now have an overwhelming feeling of responsibility. Andrew kept me safe and secure. I have lost friends who don’t know what to say to me any more.

"Henry was only three and he told his little sister that they must look after Mummy now. They won’t have their daddy there for the big moments in their lives and I am trying to keep his memory alive. When Henry woke up from his nap, Daddy was gone and a policeman was there instead. Hattie has no memories of him. To her, he has always been dead.”

Bryan’s defence counsel told the judge that her client was ‘remorseful’ and had ‘hit rock bottom’ since the collision, having been diagnosed with PTSD, depression and anxiety.

Sentencing Bryan to nine months in prison and a two-year driving ban with requirement to take an extended re-test, Judge Hickey said: “No sentence can bring Andrew back and today his voice was eloquently given by his family.

"You gave differing accounts about what had happened, which was you trying to shift the ground to avoid blame. Andrew was not blown into your path by a crosswind. He was hit squarely from behind and there was no sideways movement. I rule out any blame on Andrew. He was there to be seen. Why wasn’t he seen? Because of your distraction and tiredness. You had had five hours of sleep and this must have had an effect on your driving. You couldn’t leave your device alone and that’s why you hit him. He could easily have been avoided.”