Road traffic – Aiding and abetting – Death by dangerous driving – Jury directions

R v Paul David Martin: CA (Crim Div) (Lord Justice Hooper, Mr Justice Gross, Judge Moss QC): 6 July 2010

The appellant (M) appealed against his convictions for aiding, abetting, counselling and procuring another (L) to cause death by driving dangerously and for aiding, abetting, counselling and procuring L to inflict grievous bodily harm contrary to section 20 of the Offences against the Person Act 1861.

M was a qualified driver who had agreed to accompany L, a learner driver, while he drove a car carrying M and another passenger. As L drove around a bend, he lost control of the vehicle and it collided with another car. L and the other passenger were killed and the driver of the other car was seriously injured. At trial, the Crown alleged that L had been racing. M relied on the fact that a tyre on the car had been over-inflated and alleged that as a result it had caused the car to take the corner more tightly than L had intended and so he had oversteered and lost control. M stated that it had not occurred to him that L’s driving just before the ­accident was such as to require him to give a ­warning. Directions were given to the jury concerning foreseeability, but not concerning the ingredients of the offences of aiding and abetting the dangerous driving and grievous bodily harm.

Held: (1) A possible direction for such a case, which did not depend upon any defect in the car but on the manner of driving, when: (a) it was not the Crown’s case that the qualified supervising driver (X) anticipated the likelihood that the driver (Y) would drive dangerously in advance of him driving dangerously; and (b) X’s liability was based on his failure to act when under a duty by reason of his position as the qualified driver to do so, rather than active encouragement, was as follows. On a charge of aiding and abetting causing death by dangerous driving in those circumstances, it was necessary to be sure that Y ­committed the offence of causing death by dangerous driving and that: (a) X knew that Y was driving in a manner which X knew fell far below the standard of a competent and careful driver; (b) X, knowing that he had an opportunity to stop Y from driving in that manner, deliberately did not take that opportunity; (c) by not taking that opportunity, X intended to assist or encourage Y to drive in that manner and X did in fact, by his presence and failure to intervene, encourage Y to drive dangerously.

(2) An appropriate direction where, in the same circumstances, the supervising driver X was charged with aiding and abetting the commission of an offence under section 20 of the 1861 act by the driver Y, was as follows. It was necessary to be sure that Y committed the section 20 offence and that: (a) X knew that Y was driving in a manner likely to cause some harm to another; (b) X, knowing that he had an opportunity to stop Y from driving in that manner, deliberately did not take that opportunity; (c) by not taking that opportunity, X intended to assist or encourage Y to drive in that manner and X did in fact, by his presence and failure to intervene, encourage Y to drive in that manner.

(3) It was not disputed that the directions given by the recorder were inadequate.

Appeal allowed.

B Tabiner for the appellant; A Hiddleston for the Crown; A Edis QC for the attorney general.