" Lucky " Driver Sent to Jail
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THE retrial took place at Westmorland Intermediate Sessions at Kendal last Friday of the Silloth, Cumberland, haulage contractor who had a remarkable escape from death near Nether Bridge, Kendal, in January. A load of 10 tons of girders shifted to crush the cab of his lorry and he was trapped with his head between the spokes of the steering wheel for 40 minutes before being extricated. William Lewis Pattinson, the owner of the vehicle, and at the time disqualified from driving because of a speeding conviction, pleaded Not Guilty at the April Sessions to being the driver at the time of the accident. He stated in evidence on that occasion that when the cab creaked and started to collapse he shouted to Ernest Arthur Andrews, a driver employed by him during his disqualification, to jump out. Pattinson then slid into the driving scat, according to evidence given by both he and Andrews, merely to halt the vehicle, and was trapped when the cub collapsed. On that occasion the jury of nine men and three women failed to agree after retirements totalling 2+ hours, and a retrial was ordered. On Friday, after another hearing lasting nearly five hours, an all-male jury returned a verdict of Guilty, and Pattinson was sentenced to three months' imprisonment, plus a new disqualification from driving for 12 months.
PERMANENT LOADING BAN IN WEST END
THE banon loading and unloading at present imposed by police experimental regulations is to be made permanent in West End parking zones in July. In the meantime, ordinary waiting restrictions will apply--any vehicle will be allowed to wait, on or off a meter, for as long as may be necessary to load or unload goods within a maximum of 20 minutes.