Police face crash death payout

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The family of Rachel Cheesewright launched a civil claim against Kent Police after she died when her Ford Fiesta was in collision with a marked police car as it responded to a 999 call on a country road.

Barmaid Miss Cheesewright, 29, of Ashford, Kent, died from multiple injuries as she drove from work on the A28 Ashford Road junction with Bissenden Green Lane, Bethersden, on October 22, 2005.

The car driven by Miss Cheesewright - a mother of one who was engaged at the time of the crash - was torn into two sections, while the two police officers in the Skoda escaped with minor injuries.

Driver Pc William Purse admitted reaching speeds of up to 100mph a few seconds before the crash, but told the inquest into her death that he had decelerated as he approached the junction.

The inquest jury returned a verdict of accidental death following the four-day hearing in Dover in January. And the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) decided no further action should be taken.

But Miss Cheesewright's family pursued the case as they believed the police were travelling too fast, leading to a two-day hearing at Canterbury County Court in July when Judge Jonathan Simpkiss reserved judgment.

His ruling states the police driver was "100% at fault" and his judgment now paves the way for Miss Cheesewright's family to be awarded substantial damages at a later date.

Kent Police, which was refused leave to appeal, said it would be considering the judgment.

Following the hearing, family solicitor Sarah Harman said: "The implications for the family are very important in that Rachel's daughter will be taken care of. But there is a wider lesson from this which is that police cannot drive at excessive speeds on country roads and ignore the interests of other road users."