Man jailed for causing death by dangerous driving in Chesterfield

A man has been jailed after the car he was driving struck a woman on a pedestrian crossing in Chesterfield and killed her.

Support worker and cleaner Ann McTighe had been walking home following a shift at a local care home at around 2.20pm on Wednesday 6 January 2021.

The 60-year-old was crossing the A61 Derby Road at the pedestrian crossing just after Redvers Buller Road and Sherwood Street, having waited for the lights to change to red for vehicles and green for pedestrians.

At that same moment, Angus Goodchild, of Nottingham Road, Belper, had been driving a black Fiat Panda back to his home from Chesterfield.

He failed to see the light change to red, and he failed to see Mrs McTighe crossing the road. The car hit her.

Ann was rushed to hospital and sadly died later the same day from multiple head and abdominal injuries, having suffered a fractured skull and multiple other fractures.

The 25-year-old admitted causing death by dangerous driving at Derby Crown Court and was sentenced to four years in prison at a hearing on Tuesday 8 November 2022.

During the hearings, the court heard how Angus Goodchild had been using his mobile phone to search for a song shortly before the collision and had been using his device heavily to listen to music and send messages.

It was estimated he had been travelling between 33mph and 38mph at the time, with the speed limit on the road being 30mph.

Other drivers also reported to police that the sun had been low, causing glare, and while on his journey the water reservoir for the windscreen washers on the Fiat Panda had run low, which Goodchild had said made his vision worse.

Ann’s husband and daughters gave written victim impact statements which were read out in court. They said how she was a much loved, kind-hearted person, who always would put others before herself.

They described how their worlds had been turned upside down, and that their lives would never be the same. Her husband said she was his soul mate and that he had moved home because the memories he had in the house they had shared together were too painful to bear.

Detective Constable Darren Parkin of our Collision Investigation Unit said: “A family have been truly devastated by their loss of a much-treasured wife, mother and grandmother and although no prison sentence can ever bring Ann back, I do hope that this brings them some closure.

“Angus Goodchild had no previous convictions of any kind, but he is now in jail because of his actions that day. There are no winners here, only life-changing consequences for all involved.”

DC Parkin added: “When you get behind the wheel, please just think about the potential impact of distractions can have on your driving, and how important it is to drive safely, and without any impairments.

“You might think that it may never happen to you, but sadly this case shows it actually can.”