Woman who rammed cyclist will give birth in jail

A woman who rammed a cyclist into a tree after he told her off for using her mobile phone at the wheel was jailed for three years.

Damien Doughty, 38, was left in intensive care with a lacerated liver and fractured ribs when Justine Henshaw-Bryan, 25, smashed into his bike.

He was on his way home from a meditation session when he saw Henshaw-Bryan using her mobile as she drove her boyfriend’s Ford Fiesta.

In the argument that followed Mr Doughty kicked the car’s wing mirror when she told him to ‘f*ck off’ and gave him the middle finger.

Henshaw-Bryan gave chase as he rode away and ruthlessly mowed him down.

Mr Doughty said ‘[I was] exceptionally scared. You can hear the engine revving really close to you.

‘I remember the car rear ending me, kind of letting out a scream and realising what was happening.

‘I crumbled into a heap on the floor, and I am in extreme amounts of pain. And fully aware that the car is long gone.’

Henshaw-Bryan claimed her boyfriend Aaron Hall, who was in the passenger’s seat, grabbed the wheel and aimed at Mr Doughty but she was convicted of causing serious injury by dangerous driving at Wood Green Crown Court.

She is three months pregnant and will now have her child in custody.

Judge Gregory Perrins told her: ‘This was not an accident caused by your reckless driving – this was a calculated attempt to ram Mr Doughty, effectively using your car as a weapon.

‘You didn’t accept what you did at trial, nor did you show any remorse for what you did.

‘You could have stopped the car at any time. You could have simply driven on your way.’

He continued: ‘He has fortunately recovered but it’s not inconceivable that your deliberate act could have killed him.’

‘You took the conscious and considered decision to ram him off the road.

‘It would have been obvious to you that to do so would carry the risk of causing serious or even fatal injury but you did so regardless.’

‘It seems to be the case that you thought what you did was a just response to his action of kicking your wing mirror.’

‘You were driving at an inappropriate speed and in an aggressive manner – as a cyclist your victim was particularly vulnerable.

‘This is aggravated by your failure to stop, which can only be because you realised what you had done and you didn’t want to be caught.

‘Those who are unable to control their temper when driving and feel that cyclists are some how fair game must be dealt with severely.’

Henshaw-Bryan shouted: ‘I love you Mummy, I love you Daddy,’ as she was led away.

She had denied talking on her mobile phone before the incident at Victorian Grove, Stoke Newington, north London, around 9pm on 10 February last year.

Henshaw-Bryan told the court: ‘Mr Doughty was on my right – he was taking an extremely long time to cross in front of me so I shushed him across the road with my hand.

‘He got a bit annoyed at that and he came up on my side and said something.’

She said Mr Hall had been lying with the seat in the fully reclined position and hadn’t seen the exchange between her and the victim, but became enraged when Mr Doughty kicked the wing mirror.

‘He said “what the f*ck was that?” I told him it was a cyclist so he said “catch up with him, get him” so I followed.

‘He ordered me. He ordered me to follow him.

‘I couldn’t see the cyclist because Aaron’s body was turned so his back was towards the window and the cyclist was on the left hand side of the car.’

‘Aaron said “lick him down”.’

‘Aaron grabbed the wheel. He reached out with his right hand and grabbed the wheel.’

Asked why she hadn’t stopped when she saw the cyclist on the pavement, she replied: ‘Because Aaron told me not too and I was scared of him.

‘Aaron just wanted to get away and he was more than happy that revenge had been given.’

Nigel May, prosecuting, accused Henshaw-Bryan of ‘saying absolutely anything to save your own skin’.

The car was traced back to Mr Hall’s grandmother’s address, and he forced Henshaw-Bryan to hand herself in because his previous girlfriend – the only woman on the insurance – was being questioned by police.

Mr Hall admitted telling Henshaw-Bryan to follow the cyclist, but only to confront him about the damage to the wing mirror and to try and get him to pay for it.

He denied grabbing the wheel and was not charged with any offence.

David Rhodes, for Henshaw-Bryan, argued she should be given a lenient sentence because of her age and her pregnancy.

‘She’s not a child but she’s of a relatively young age,’ he said.

‘The impact of a custodial sentence will be on others – she’s the sole carer for her mother and her mother has various complex health needs.’

He added that Henshaw-Bryan had been asking at what stage her baby would be taken away from her and whether her mother would be allowed to be present at the birth.

‘The real impact of a custodial sentence will be on her mother and her unborn child.’

Henshaw-Bryan, of Lister Court, Yoakley Road, Hackney, denied was convicted of one count of causing serious injury by dangerous driving.

She was also banned from the roads for four-and-a-half years and ordered to complete an extended driving test before she can get back behind the wheel.
ENDS