A motorist who left a leading university professor to die in the road after reversing over him in his Land Rover has been handed a suspended prison sentence.
A Fatal Manoeuvre on a Sunny Day
Portsmouth Crown Court heard that on 5 June 2022, a "beautiful, sunny day", Timothy Cale, 59, performed a "dangerous" manoeuvre. The shopkeeper, who lived on the Isle of Wight at the time, reversed his Land Rover Freelander around a corner in Shorwell. He was travelling between garages as the vehicle had failed its MOT two weeks prior due to an ignition issue, having been driven 384 miles since the test failure.
At the same moment, Professor Simon McQueen-Mason, a 64-year-old biology professor at the University of York, was out cycling. The court was told the professor "couldn't have avoided" the collision as Cale reversed into his path, leaving him with no time to move.
Leaving the Scene and Subsequent Trial
Following the deafening impact, Cale claimed he thought he had hit a branch on the unkempt road and drove away, parking his car and leaving the fatally injured academic on the ground. He returned on foot shortly after and realised what he had done.
In subsequent police interviews, Cale, a father of four, stated the accident was not his fault and suggested Dr McQueen-Mason must have been cycling "too fast". He pleaded not guilty to death by careless driving but was found guilty by a jury at Newport Crown Court in November 2025.
Suspended Sentence Handed Down
At the sentencing hearing, Judge David Melville KC cited aggravating factors, including that the professor was a vulnerable road user as a cyclist. He also noted that while the MOT failure did not directly cause the crash, the journey would not have occurred if the vehicle had passed its test.
However, mitigating circumstances led to a non-custodial sentence. The judge described Cale as a "family man" with no previous convictions, who was caring for his father diagnosed with cancer. The court heard his 17-year-old daughter was about to take A-levels and was distressed at the prospect of her father being imprisoned.
As a result, Cale, now unemployed, received a two-year suspended sentence. He was also banned from driving for three years, ordered to complete 200 hours of unpaid work, and must pay a victim surcharge. The professor's wife attended the sentencing at Portsmouth Crown Court.
