Victim claims Borrows’ car sped up
Whanganui MP Chester Borrows faced a nervous sleep last night, as he waited to hear if a judge will dismiss a police case of careless driving against him.
His lawyer Nathan Bourke made the application in the Whanganui District Court on Monday at the end of the first day of his two-day trial.
If the application is not successful, Borrows and deputy prime minister Paula Bennett will enter the witness box today to give evidence.
Borrows, a former police officer, is charged with careless driving causing injury to two protesters outside the Collegiate Motor Inn on March 22, 2016.
Bennett was in Borrows’ car when he went to leave the inn. He was confronted by protesters, who stood in the car’s path.
A video played to the court showed Borrows driving his car, which does not appear to stop. A yelp is heard, the crowd disperses, and Borrows drives away.
One of the woman injured in the incident, Denise Lockett, said she thought the worst when she was hit by Borrows’ car.
‘‘I thought ‘oh my god, you are going under, girl’ and I folded over the bonnet.’’
Lockett said she and three other members of an anti-tppa group went to the inn, in Whanganui, to protest.
She saw Bennett get into Borrows’ car to leave.
‘‘It had been suggested we lie on the driveway, which I found a little scary,’’ Lockett said.
The group walked and stopped in front of the car, which slowed for a moment before continuing towards them, she said.
‘‘In my perception, he actually sped up a little. When it reached me I thought ‘I had better move out of the way’, but my leg was already trapped under the car.’’
She felt a police officer drag her out of the way, and suffered leg injuries as a result.
Bourke suggested to protester Tracey Treadwell that she was trying to ‘‘detain’’ Borrows when they walked in front of the car.
‘‘You were intending to swarm that vehicle.’’
Treadwell said the group’s intention was to make sure Borrows and Bennett knew their concerns about the TPPA. She believed police would ask them to move after a period of time.
Bourke referenced a statement from an officer on the scene, who said they saw a woman walk into the side of Borrows’ car after being pulled away.
Treadwell denied doing that, saying she stood still until she was hit, and was only pulled away by police.
In a statement he provided to police, which was read to the court, Borrows said he was concerned about threats made about Bennett on Facebook, and people had jumped on his car at other protests. As he drove to leave a function at the inn, he came across a group of protesters.
He said he feathered the brakes and was ready to stop at any point if he felt he needed to.
Constable Stewart Bourne was at the protest to keep the peace. He said he had his back to the car when the protesters were hit.
He filled in a crash report afterwards, which was produced by Bourke.
In the report, Bourne said the car was travelling 1kmh when it was ‘‘swamped’’ by protesters. Borrows was likely unaware of what had happened, and the vehicle and speed were not a factor.
Bourke suggested to the constable the report showed Borrows had not been careless, and Bourne agreed. The trial continues. If found guilty, the penalties Borrows faces range from a discharge without conviction to three years’ jail or a $4500 fine, and a driver’s licence disqualification for at least six months.