Met Police officer 'drove straight into’ great-grandmother who died following Duchess of Edinburgh escort through London

Helen Holland, 81, died two weeks after she was struck by Met officer PC Christopher Harrison at a pedestrian crossing on May 10, 2023.

The Old Bailey heard Harrison was going between 44mph and 58mph as he approached the light on West Cromwell Road in west London.

Harrison was among the team of convoy motorbike outriders that was escorting the Duchess as she left the Foreign and Commonwealth Development Office in King Charles Street just after 3pm.

The officer has pleaded not guilty to causing death by careless driving and is standing trial.

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The court heard that the speed limit on the road was 30mph at the time of the collision and has since been changed to 20mph.

Prosecutor Michelle Heeley KC said Harrison "was allowed to exceed the speed limit but he still had a duty to drive carefully."

Ms Heeley said: "As a police escort motorbike, the defendant was allowed to do things other drivers can’t do, for example, he could exceed the speed limit, and go through red lights, but he still had a duty to other road users, including pedestrians, to make sure that his driving was careful."

The car that the Duchess was in and a police backup vehicle were also part of the convoy.

All of the motorcyclists were informed of an upcoming pedestrian crossing so they knew to look out for it, the court heard.

Ms Heeley said: "The crossing then changed to red for the traffic.

"The second bike in the convoy went through and passed back the information that the lights had changed to red.

"Eighteen seconds later, Mr Harrison drove through the red light, collided with Mrs Holland, who had been crossing at the pedestrian crossing."

She was 2.9 metres into the crossing when Harrison's motorbike hit her, the court heard.

Ms Heeley added: "Mrs Holland was entitled to be crossing then, Mr Harrison knew that the light for traffic, for him, was red and so he should have taken care when driving through the red light, but he did not stop and he did not see Mrs Holland, which is why he drove straight into her.

"He should have seen her, he should have expected there to be pedestrians and thus modified his driving somehow, but he didn’t, and that is why the prosecution say he was driving carelessly at that point."

The job of the outriders was to pave the way for the convoy to travel onwards safely by spotting and controlling any potential hazards, which could include junctions or traffic lights.

The motorcyclists have whistles to help alert the public, and their bikes also have blue lights.

Ms Heeley told the jury: "This collision occurred because Mrs Holland was crossing at a pedestrian crossing as she was entitled to do and Mr Harrison did not see her.

"He accepted in interview that he did not see her. He said she appeared from nowhere.

"She didn't appear from nowhere. She must have been at the side of the road before she crossed, and then she was three metres into the carriageway when she was hit.

"Mr Harrison was entitled to drive exceeding the speed limit and to go through red lights but he still had a duty to drive carefully, sadly on this occasion his driving was not up to the expected standard."

Passer-by Diana Cetara, who saw the collision as she took her dogs to the park, also told the court: "She was crossing, a motorbike hit her and then she flew away – to be honest, I was a bit of a mess then."

Harrison's motorbike was examined afterwards and there was nothing wrong with it that would have caused the collision.

Following her death, Mrs Holland's family described her as a "a great grandmother, gardener, and country walker every week.

"Something like an Angel. She will never be forgotten."

The trial continues.