I think of her death every day, says driver who ran over woman lying on road
THE driver of a car that ran over and killed a 23-year-old woman has told an inquest into her death how he thinks about the accident every day.
Jayne Burnside, from Tullyhogue, just outside Cookstown, was lying on a road near her home when she was driven over by Kyle Rainey on April 11, 2015, shortly after 12.30am.
A forensic scientist who examined the scene told the hearing the motorist would not have been able to see Ms Burnside as he approached and that his view would have been further blocked by another car.
Mr Rainey, who wept during the hearing, told Coroner Joe McCrisken that after stopping his Vauxhall Astra because a Honda Jazz was blocking the road, he moved off at approximately 5mph.
He then “felt something” on the road, after which he stopped instantly and shouted to the people in the Honda “What was that, a dog?” One of the occupants replied “Oh my God, you ran over a girl”.
Mr Rainey explained: “I didn’t know who she was, but I knew straight away I needed help.
“I ran to the girl and I told her to stay calm, that it was going to be okay, that I was sorry.
A statement given by Ms Burnside’s mother, Dorothy, was read out in court, detailing how Jayne had earlier been drinking Prosecco at home and “was in good form”.
Sean Hughes, a friend of the deceased, later arrived at the family home for a drink with Jayne.
Mr Hughes later informed Mrs Burnside that her daughter had passed out on the floor of the conservatory.
Mrs Burnside tended to Jayne but said she “wasn’t too concerned because her daughter often pretended to faint when she wanted people to leave the house” or when she was “looking for attention”.
Some time later, the family were later alerted to the fatal accident by a member of the public, Saoirse Morgan, after she came upon the scene.
State Pathologist Dr James Lyness said a post-mortem examination discovered that Ms Burnside had sustained 16 broken ribs and significant bruising to her lung, which would have caused her death.
In his finding, Mr McCrisken recorded the cause of death as chest injuries.
He was unable to say why Ms Burnside had left the house or why she had placed herself on the road.
However, he stressed he did not believe she intended to take her own life.
The coroner added that attempts to move the victim before the Fire Service lifted the car could have caused further injuries but insisted that her life could not have been saved.