The Royal College of Physicians has said it is taking "appropriate action" against an account manager who drove away with a police officer clinging to her Range Rover after a roadside alcohol test. Candace DeSilva, 37, of Oakfield Road in Anfield, appeared at Liverpool Crown Court this week, where she admitted causing serious injury by dangerous driving and assaulting an emergency worker.
Incident on Leeds Street
The court heard that PC Simon Woods, a former RAF medic and Afghanistan veteran, pulled DeSilva over on Leeds Street in Liverpool city centre at around 4.15pm on September 14 2024, after she was seen using her mobile phone behind the wheel and performing an illegal U-turn. A roadside alcohol test found she was nearly three times the legal limit.
After saying "you're not f***ing searching me", DeSilva began driving her car forwards with the officer holding onto the steering wheel in an attempt to avoid being dragged underneath the wheels. She repeatedly struck out at the officer's hand, causing lacerations to his fingers and palm. He eventually was able to hit his panic button and deployed his PAVA spray into DeSilva's eyes.
Sentencing and Impact
DeSilva later resisted arrest by throwing herself to the floor, causing a set of handcuffs to scrape down a second officer's forearm. She walked free from court after being handed a 28-month sentence, suspended for two years, after the judge considered the impact immediate custody would have on her four children.
Sentencing, Judge Garrett Byrne said: "You were over the legal limit, considerably so, and you were rightly arrested and cautioned. You then put the key in the ignition and made to drive off. PC Ward took hold of your hands to stop you. You then placed the vehicle in drive and drove forwards with PC Ward being dragged along, shouting that you were going home. You travelled about six car lengths before the officer was able to incapacitate you. Your behaviour continued by lashing out at him."
He added: "PC Ward describes desperately trying not to be dragged under the vehicle. He now suffers from very serious and lifelong injuries. Your behaviour here was absolutely appalling. Your reckless actions did not just cause serious and permanent injuries to a public servant, someone acting on behalf of all of us to protect us, keeping the roads safe from people such as yourself, who are prepared to drink and drive, but you could have killed him. This is a very, very serious matter indeed."
Employer Response
DeSilva works as an account manager at the Royal College of Physicians, the professional body which trains and accredits physicians. A spokesperson for the Royal College of Physicians said it had become aware this week of media reports concerning DeSilva. They added: "We take the concerns raised very seriously and are taking appropriate action. As this is an individual employment matter, we are unable to comment further at this time."
DeSilva's lawyer, Charles Lander, said two of the mum's children had been diagnosed with neurodivergent conditions and having special educational needs. He added that DeSilva's partner did not work and if she was jailed immediately the family would lose their home. He said: "Immediately, before any court proceedings were initiated, she voluntarily registered with Alcoholics Anonymous and NHS talking therapies. She recognised that she had drunk too much on that day...She is not a regular drinker. She drunk too much on that day and got into her car and behaved in the way that she did. She has not drunk any alcohol since that day."
PC Woods told the court: "The incident has made me a vulnerable shell of a man who has no true sense of identity and avoids social situations. I'm reliant heavily on others and have now registered as disabled. I'm in constant pain, day and night. This almost feels like a death sentence. I've lost the ability to do things I enjoy. She can do all of those things. To drag another human being, let alone a police officer, along with a vehicle tells me that she's above the law."
