A 90-year-old driver who mistakenly pressed the accelerator instead of the brake, killing two women, has been given a suspended sentence and a lifetime driving ban. Philip Bull was sentenced at Manchester Crown Court on Tuesday for causing the deaths of Clare Haslam, 44, and Deborah Clifton, 49, outside Withington Hospital in March.
The court heard that Bull was reversing his Ford Focus into a parking space when the vehicle spun out of control, striking the two women. Clifton was crushed to death despite bystanders lifting the car off her, and Haslam died shortly after from multiple injuries. Onlookers described Bull as being in a 'confused state' after the incident, reportedly asking what he had done.
Judge Martin Walsh stated that jailing Bull would not serve as a deterrent or be in the public interest, noting that Bull would live with the burden of his actions. Bull, a retired textiles merchant and former serviceman, pleaded guilty to two counts of causing death by dangerous driving. His barrister argued that Bull had cared for his wife of 65 years, who suffers from Alzheimer's, and that an immediate prison sentence would leave her without support.
Friends and family of the victims expressed their anger in court, with one person shouting at Bull's son. The families described Haslam and Clifton as 'soulmates' who were 'blissfully happy'. Bull received a two-year suspended sentence and was banned from driving for life.
