Why a disabled pedestrian had her cyclist manslaughter conviction quashed

A woman who shouted and waved at a cyclist, causing her to fall in front of a car, has had her manslaughter conviction overturned. Auriol Grey, who has cerebral palsy and is partially blind, was jailed for three years in 2023, following the incident in Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire. But yesterday, the court of appeal overturned the 50-year-old’s conviction; her lawyers said she was a vulnerable pedestrian who ‘should never have been charged’. Grey’s family responded by saying ‘we hope lessons will be learned.’

This is a tragic case in which there are no winners. In October 2020, Grey was walking along a pavement when a 77-year-old cyclist, Celia Ward, attempted to pass her. CCTV footage showed that, rather than seeking to get out of the way, Grey gesticulated at Ward, shouting ‘get off the fucking pavement’. Ward subsequently fell off her bike into the road and into the path of a car.