Straits Times Sep 18, 2010
Driver cleared of causing cyclist's death
Judge doubts whether driver with right of way could have seen man
By Selina Lum
A MOTORIST who crashed into an elderly cyclist, who was defying all possible road traffic rules, was yesterday acquitted by the High Court of causing the 86-year- old's death through negligence.
In overturning the conviction of Addie Razali Lau, Justice Steven Chong said he doubted whether Mr Lau, 37, who had the right of way, could reasonably have seen Mr Sewa Singh at all before the accident.
The judge also doubted whether the accident could have been avoided even if Mr Lau, who was travelling at 60kmh, was within the speed limit of 50kmh at the time of the incident.
On the evening of June 7, 2008, Mr Lau was taking his wife, two children and parents for dinner.
He was driving along Eunos Road 8 towards Tanjong Katong Road, with the lights in his favour, when Mr Singh cycled diagonally across the junction, against the flow of traffic and into the path of Mr Lau's car.
Flung across the windscreen, Mr Singh was taken to hospital with serious injuries and died nearly two months later.
Mr Lau was charged with causing Mr Singh's death through negligence by failing to keep a proper lookout and driving above the speed limit.
After a trial, he was found guilty by a district court, fined $6,000 and banned from driving for three years. The maximum penalty is two years' jail and a fine.
Mr Lau appealed to the High Court to set aside the conviction.
Yesterday, his lawyer, Mr Abdul Salim Ahmed Ibrahim, argued that while cyclists are vulnerable road users, they owed a duty to themselves to exercise common sense and steer clear of acts that would put their own lives in danger.
'It is crystal clear that the deceased was the author of his own fate by blatantly disobeying and disregarding all traffic and road safety rules applicable to him as a cyclist,' the lawyer argued.
The prosecution conceded that Mr Singh had cycled against the flow of traffic while the lights were in Mr Lau's favour.
But Deputy Public Prosecutor Kan Shuk Weng said the fact that Mr Singh was not following road traffic rules did not mean Mr Lau did not owe him a duty of care.
Otherwise, the DPP argued, it would lead to the 'absurd' position that a driver is entitled to run down a person who is jaywalking since he has flouted traffic rules.
But in giving his decision to acquit Mr Lau, Justice Chong did not comment on Mr Singh's conduct.
The judge said he disagreed with the lower court's conclusion that Mr Lau had failed to keep a proper lookout because he did not slow down after his wife, who saw Mr Singh through the left passenger window, alerted him seconds before Mr Singh collided with the vehicle.
Justice Chong said it was not reasonable to expect a driver to be glancing at an extreme side angle while the lights were in his favour and his attention rightly focused on the traffic ahead of him.
As for Mr Lau's breaching of the speed limit, the judge said there was no evidence to show that the accident would not have occurred if Mr Lau, who went over by just 10kmh, had kept within the speed limit.
National Safety Council president Tan Jin Thong said cyclists should cut across the road only when the cars are at a safe distance or, better still, when there are no cars. 'Cyclists, especially the older folks, must take precautions because in an accident, they are always on the losing end.'
selinal@sph.com.sg
