Overview
- At Wolverhampton Crown Court, Joan Barwick, 95, admitted causing death by dangerous driving and received a 16-month term suspended with a 10-year driving ban.
- She struck 78-year-old Linda Wareham while turning into the Tesco Express petrol forecourt on Hagley Road in Stourbridge on April 17 last year.
- Wareham died in hospital the next day from catastrophic head injuries, and the judge said she was entirely blameless with the right of way on the pavement.
- Prosecutors said CCTV showed Barwick looking toward a vacant disabled parking bay rather than ahead, giving her about seven seconds to see the pedestrian while turning at roughly 10 mph.
- The judge called it a momentary failure and cited her age, clean record, remorse and a recent eyesight check in suspending custody, highlighting how courts balance accountability and driver fitness in later life.