Road rage Mum ‘lost control’ and smashed phone
AMUM shouted at a cyclist he “shouldn’t even be in the road” and smashed his phone. Sylvanna Hall, of Soldiers Road, Patchway, was involved in a road-rage incident while her two children were in the back of her car, on St Marks Road, Easton.
The support worker, 33, appeared at Bristol Magistrates’ Court and admitted criminal damage to a £250 phone owned by cyclist Jan Laffan.
District judge Lynne Matthews said the defendant had been driving in Bristol on December 29 last year when she encountered Mr Laffan.
Judge Matthews told the court: “The defendant was said to have shouted, ‘Get out my way, you’re on a bike, you shouldn’t even be in the road.’”
Around 10 minutes later, Hall saw Mr Laffan again. She pulled up, got out of her car, approached him and threatened him. Mr Laffan took out his phone to record what was happening.
During an altercation, the cyclist “hit the defendant using his head” and she punched him, added Judge Matthews, who accepted this was “not part of the charge”.
The judge said: “The defendant took the victim’s phone, deliberately dropped it to the ground and smashed it.”
Hall’s lawyer, Dianne Heys, said her client had not been following Mr Laffan, but had happened to see him further down the road after the first confrontation.
“She does go into the bus lane and accepts she was angry, but in terms of the physical confrontation, he headbutts her, she reacts to that and hits him,” she said. “He is videoing her, she doesn’t want to be photographed or videoed, she takes the phone, he tussles with her to get it back, and it falls to the floor. She denies it was a deliberate throw.
“It’s clear things got somewhat out of hand. Ms Hall’s children were in the back of the vehicle. They are aged 11 and eight, and she is the sole carer of those children.
“She works as a support worker. She works very hard and has some support from her mother, but essentially it’s just her and her children. She has never been in trouble before.”
In his victim statement, Mr Laffan said the incident had “greatly affected” him and made him wary of cycling along St Marks Road and Stapleton Road.
He said: “This has made it very stressful to travel that route and I have started avoiding it. This has added extra time to my journey.
“Stapleton Road can be stressful anyway with regard to traffic, and this has made it even more so.”
His phone was “completely broken” and photos of sentimental value had not been backed up.
He said: “Years of memories were lost, in particular from my visit to Australia with my brother. This was a once-in-a-lifetime trip, and it makes me very sad to think I will never get these photos back.”
The judge described Hall’s actions as “appalling”, noting she had “clearly lost control”.
“You behaved in a way which your children should never have seen,” Judge Matthews told her.
“When parents behave in a reprehensible manner in the presence of children, the children learn that type of behaviour is acceptable, and clearly it’s far from acceptable.
“You have reflected on your behaviour and entered a guilty plea today. I give you full credit for that.”
The judge imposed a 56-day driving ban with a £100 fine and £250 in compensation to the cyclist. Hall must also pay £85 in prosecution costs and a £1 victim services surcharge.