A lorry driver has gone on trial accused of causing the death of an Aberdeen great-grandmother by driving carelessly.
Gerald Clark appeared in the dock at Aberdeen Sheriff Court yesterday following the incident on King Street on September 10 last year.
The 65-year-old is said to have blocked a pedestrian crossing near the St Machar roundabout with his lorry and failed to notice its traffic lights had turned red.
He accused of failing to properly check his mirrors before setting off again, driving through the crossing and hitting Mary Allan, 83, who was injured so severely that she died.
Yesterday the court was shown camera footage from four different angles, including dash-cam video from the cab of the gold lorry and CCTV from a bakery.
Before it was played, Sheriff Graeme Napier warned that it might be distressing.
He told members of Mrs Allan’s family sitting in the public benches: “If anyone wants to leave the court, please feel free to do so.”
Roads officer Jeffrey Smart, who is based in Mintlaw, said one of the videos showed Mrs Allan pressing the button to trigger the traffic lights at the pedestrian crossing.
Describing footage of the incident from one of the alternate angles, he said: “She is trying to run away from the front of the lorry.
“It strikes me that Mrs Allan has stepped out in front of the near-side before the lorry has moved off.
“I suspect she realised it was driving towards her and she was trying to avoid it.”
And when questioned by defence solicitor Chris Fyffe, the officer said he spoke to Clark in the back of an ambulance following the incident.
He said Clark identified himself as the HGV driver, and noted he was in a “fairly distressed” state.
The court later heard from Elizabeth Davidson, who was navigating the roundabout at the time of the collision.
She recalled seeing what she thought was the contents of a bag of shopping being sent “flying”.
Retired joiner Hamish Jamieson, was on his mobility scooter when he saw Mrs Allan get hit.
Fiscal depute Iain Gray also questioned Ian Gainford, the assistant chief driving examiner at the DVSA.
Using photographs of the lorry that Clark had been driving, he explained the positioning of its mirrors and their purpose.
He also read from several DVSA documents which he had a hand in creating, outlining best practice for those operating “vocational vehicles” such as buses, coaches and HGVs.
Clark, of Taits Lane in Dundee, denies the charge.
The trial continues.
