Helen Holland died 2 weeks after she was hit by a police motorcyclist escorting the Duchess of Edinburgh through London
The pensioner who died after she was hit on a crossing by a police motorcyclist escorting the Duchess of Edinburgh through London suddenly “appeared almost from nowhere,” the rider has said.
Helen Holland, 81, died two weeks after she was hit and sent flying in the incident on West Cromwell Road, West London, on May 10 2023.
Metropolitan Police officer Pc Christopher Harrison, 68 – who has pleaded not guilty to causing death by careless driving – was allegedly travelling at between 44mph and 58mph as he approached the light along the road, which had a 30mph speed limit at the time, the Old Bailey heard.
In interview with the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) watchdog, he said: “It was as if she was there in the road, almost from nowhere.”
Harrison added: “The first time I see her, she just appears to be there.
“I did not see her in the footway at all on the approach.”
His body-worn camera was not recording “because I forgot to switch it on,” he said.
Harrison was among the team of convoy motorcycle outriders that was escorting Sophie as she left the Foreign and Commonwealth Development Office in King Charles Street just after 3pm.
The prosecution say Harrison’s driving was careless and he is guilty of causing death by careless driving.
Ms Holland suffered a skull fracture, bruising to her arms, legs and body, plus fractures to her lower legs.
A post-mortem examination gave the cause of death as complications from a severe head injury.
She was 2.9 metres on to the crossing when Harrison’s motorbike hit her, the court heard.
The two working escort motorcycles ahead of Harrison had gone through the crossing by the time he arrived at the scene. The previous rider passed at 3.20pm just as the light turned red.
In his interview, Harrison also said: “As I’ve approached the crossing, literally, I had no vision of anyone approaching the crossing.
“There was no one at the crossing but then from nowhere someone has appeared.”
“I could see that it looked like a collision was about to occur so I’ve braked as hard as I could.
“I’ve moved as much as I could to the left. This is all happening in double quick time.”
As part of a designated police escort team, outriders are, in certain circumstances, legally allowed to exceed the speed limit, pass red lights and drive on the wrong side of the road to try and move.
Using these exemptions must be done safely and with minimal risk to the public, the court heard.
Along the journey, the priority of the team – who are assessing hazards and potential threat – is to try and keep the convoy moving.
Harrison told the investigator he had been aware of vehicles nearby, which included a blue sports car, a Range Rover and a van, as he is clearing a path for the convoy.
He also said he was aware of the potential for people to step out, that there was a pedestrian crossing, plus the red light had been at that colour for some time.
Harrison said: “I believe my speed was at a level that I thought took into consideration the hazards of the road.”
He did not use a whistle to alert anyone at the crossing but the court has heard this is not necessarily always needed in such situations.
Harrison joined the police in May 1982.
He transferred to the traffic department in 1989 and joined the Special Escort Group in 2002.
He completed his motorcycle refresher training in September 2022, VIP protection motorcycle escort refresher in July 2022 and convoy driving refresher in October 2022.
Johnathan Moody, Lancashire Police’s deputy chief training instructor, who was called in by the IOPC to look into the incident, said Harrison’s actions at the scene were not up to standard.
Earlier, he told the court: “Generally, for the 15 minutes of the escort, most of the junctions and hazards were dealt with as I would expect.
“Unfortunately, for the final feature – the red light – I would have expected a working bike to have stopped for that feature.”
He told the court that slowing down and stopping could have been used to “prevent members of the public from using the crossing,” he added.
Prosecutor Michelle Heeley KC previously said Harrison, who was travelling between 44mph and 58mph as he approached the light, “was allowed to exceed the speed limit but he still had a duty to drive carefully”.
She said: “Mrs Holland was entitled to be crossing then, Mr Harrison knew that the light for traffic, for him, was red, and so he should have taken care when driving through the red light, but he did not stop and he did not see Mrs Holland, which is why he drove straight into her.”
“He should have seen her, he should have expected there to be pedestrians and thus modified his driving somehow, but he didn’t, and that is why the prosecution say he was driving carelessly at that point.”
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