Drink-driver who went to check his brother was safe accidentally hit him and killed him

19 July 2022, 12:47

A drink-driver who went looking for his brother to try to make sure he was safe accidentally struck him with his van and killed him.

Nathen Pearson, 32, got behind the wheel of a hire van to search for his 34-year-old brother Aden, who had walked off from their father's house in Guyhirn, Cambridgeshire Police said.

The force said Pearson told officers he was concerned that his brother might get knocked over by a car or end up in a ditch as he was so drunk, but he then struck Aden, who was walking in the carriageway.

Pearson, of Mountbatten Way, Peterborough, was sentenced on Monday at Cambridge Crown Court to two years in prison suspended for 21 months.

He had admitted at an earlier hearing to causing death by careless driving while over the legal alcohol limit, police said.

The two brothers and their father had gone for after-work drinks at a pub in Wisbech on March 23, before Nathen Pearson drove the three of them to his father's house in Guyhirn.

Once the trio were at the house Aden Pearson said he had to get to his home in the town of March, around six miles away, to his dog.

The others tried to talk him out of leaving but failed.

Nathen Pearson waited a few minutes before he decided to go and look for his brother.

He got behind the wheel at just after 11pm but ended up hitting Aden Pearson, who was walking in the carriageway.

He attempted CPR and a passing motorist called an ambulance but Aden Pearson died at the scene just before midnight.

A back calculation, carried out due to the time delay between the collision and the breath test, indicated that Pearson had 77mcg of alcohol in 100ml of breath at the time - above the legal limit of 35mcg of alcohol.

A breath test at the station, carried out at 1.30am, gave a reading of 58mcg of alcohol per 100ml of breath.

Pearson, who had been drinking beer, told officers he did not realise he was that far over the limit and was the most sober one out of the three.

As well as his suspended jail term, Pearson was also banned from driving for five years with an extended retest requirement.

He was ordered to complete a 40-day rehabilitation activity requirement and 200 hours of unpaid work.

Detective Sergeant Mark Dollard, of the Beds, Cambs and Herts (BCH) Road Policing Unit, said: "This is another case that shows the dangers and consequences of drink-driving.

"Pearson left his house that night intending to protect his brother, but due to his alcohol consumption he did exactly the opposite and knocked him down.

"Alcohol affects your cognitive abilities.

"Regardless of the sanctions imposed today by the court, Pearson will carry his own life sentence for causing the death of his brother.

"If anything can be learned from this tragic case, it is that drink-driving ruins lives."