Police officer cleared over pedestrian crash death

A police officer accused of causing death by dangerous driving after a pedestrian was hit by a patrol car has been cleared.

Charges have been dropped against Sussex PC Christopher Corker, 40, in a hearing at the Old Bailey in London.

It had been alleged he knocked down and killed Arthur Holscher-Ermert, 27, in Peacehaven on 30 April 2022.

However, at a hearing earlier, the prosecution said that in light of expert reports there was no longer a realistic prospect of conviction.

Mr Holscher-Ermert was struck just after 23:10 BST and confirmed dead at the scene.

Footage of the incident had been shown in court at an earlier hearing.

PC Corker, of Worthing in West Sussex, had pleaded not guilty to causing death by dangerous driving and causing death by careless or inconsiderate driving.

He had been due to face trial on Monday.

However, prosecutor Jonathan Sandiford KC offered no evidence at Monday's hearing before Judge Richard Marks KC, saying that in light of expert reports there was no longer a realistic prospect of a conviction.

It had been alleged that PC Corker deliberately steered on to the wrong side of the road towards the pedestrian in a "misguided and dangerous attempt to stop him running away".

However, the court was told of agreement between experts that the defendant’s actions in steering on to the wrong side of the road would have avoided a collision had the deceased not changed direction.

Judge Marks formally entered not guilty verdicts and offered his condolences to the family, saying: “It appears to have been a tragic accident.”

In a statement after the hearing, the family said: “Instead of attending trial today, we as a family have had to process the sudden news that the CPS are discontinuing criminal proceedings against PC Corker.

“This is incredibly upsetting and disappointing... We were hoping to start to get answers about what happened to Arthur and why.

"We are shocked to now find out that PC Corker isn't going to be held criminally accountable for what he has done."

The family said they would continue to "fight" for "truth and accountability" and would now look ahead to the inquest.

PC Corker had previously been placed on restricted duties and was to face a misconduct investigation.

Following the Old Bailey hearing, Sussex Police Chief Constable Jo Shiner said: "We welcome the outcome reached by the court, and in particular, the judge's comments that the collision appears to have been a tragic accident."

Ms Shiner said her thoughts remained with Mr Holscher-Emert's family and also the officer who had faced criminal proceedings over the last 20 months.

She added: “While today concludes the criminal investigation, we await an update from the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) on any potential misconduct proceedings and urge this decision to be made swiftly."

The IOPC had referred a file of evidence to the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) to consider charges against two Sussex Police officers relating to Mr Holscher-Ermert’s death.

After PC Corker was cleared, an IOPC spokesperson said: “We will now consider how this further evidence impacts our decision that two officers should face gross misconduct hearings for potential breaches of the police standards of professional behaviour, following our investigation which concluded in April 2023.

“We will liaise with the force about this in due course and will ensure that Arthur Holscher-Ermert’s family are kept updated.”

Follow BBC Sussex on Facebook, on X, and on Instagram. Send your story ideas to [email protected] or WhatsApp us on 08081 002250.