Retired Lincolnshire police officer given suspended sentence after fatal crash

A retired Lincolnshire police officer who caused a fatal crash when he pulled out infront of a "popular and well respected" motorcyclist has been given a suspended jail sentence.
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Malcolm Dodd, 73, of Mill Lane, Saxilby, had denied causing the death of 23-year-old Richard Arbon by careless driving on June 6, 2019.

But the former police sergeant was found guilty after a trial at Lincoln Crown Court in December.

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The jury heard Mr Dodd turned right onto the A57 near Burton just after 1.20pm and collided with a motorcycle being ridden by Mr Arbon.

Richard Arbon died after a crash on June 6, 2019.Richard Arbon died after a crash on June 6, 2019.
Richard Arbon died after a crash on June 6, 2019.

His car door collided with Mr Arbon who suffered head injuries which caused him to die at the scene.

Mr Arbon's mother, Denise Arbon, read out a moving victim impact statement in court before Mr Dodd was sentenced.

Mrs Arbon told the court Richard had achieved so many things in his 23 years, including becoming the youngest ever unit trainer for the St John's Ambulance Service in Lincolnshire, and was also the student president of Lincoln College for 18 months.

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The court heard Mr Dodd had no previous convictions, including for driving.

Siward James-Moore, mitigating for Mr Dodd, said he now accepted that his mistake had caused the death of this young man.

And Mr James-Moore told the court Mr Dodd had also decided to give up driving for good.

The court heard Mr Dodd was a long serving police officer who worked as a Sergeant in Lincolnshire before retiring, and lives alone.

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Before passing sentence Judge Simon Hirst made it clear no sentence could put a value on Mr Arbon's life and he told Mr Dodd he took the view his driving was more than a momentary error of judgement.

Judge Hirst said: "Richard Arbon was plainly well respected by many people, and had helped a great many people in this county."

But the Judge said while Mr Dodd's driving clearly passed the custudial threshold, he also had to consider the sentencing guidelines on suspending the sentence.

Mr Dodd was sentenced to nine months imprisonment suspended for two years and was banned from driving for 12 months and he must also pay £1,500 court costs and obey a curfew for three months.