Drivers in six-mile road rage row that killed cyclist ‘will be jailed’

A PAIR of motorists who killed a cyclist after arguing with each other in a road rage row lasting six miles have both been found guilty of causing death by dangerous driving.

Paige Robinson, 24, hit the rider while travelling at around 70mph, a court heard, and David Ferry, 47, driving a black Audi TT sports coupe, drove on after the collision. Ferry had been alongside Robinson, arguing with her in the moments before the crash.

A jury reached a unanimous guilty verdict after just three hours of deliberation at Teesside Crown Court.

Graham Pattison, 49, a father-of-two, was cycling from Sedgefield to Wynyard on the A689 at about 4pm on July 24, 2020 when he was hit by the car, Yorkshire Live reported. He was propelled 40m into the air after Robinson’s Ford Fiesta hit his back wheel. He was pronounced dead soon after.

Robinson immediately told witnesses, who stopped to help Pattison, that a black Audi had swerved towards her, causing her to steer away to avoid a crash.

She said she did not see Pattison cycling near the edge of the road.

Ferry, an ex-army officer, told police he had not seen the cyclist or the crash and he just “wanted to get home”.

However, the court heard the pair had spent a six-mile stretch of the A689 arguing. Ferry claimed Robinson cut in front of him twice, while Robinson said Ferry gesticulated and swore, before pointing at her to pull over.

The two blamed each other for causing the fatal crash. Ferry said Robinson was “aggressively harassing” him in the argument.

However, Robinson alleged that Ferry was the one who was angry, and repeatedly slammed on his brakes and sped away from her. She said she pulled into the slow lane to get away from him, but he then began to drive by her side, before swerving towards her.

Witnesses said they saw Robinson’s car “wobble” before it hit Pattison. A lorry driver going in the opposite direction said he heard a loud bang and “saw a cyclist travelling through the air”.

Judge Jonathan Carroll said: “A custodial sentence is inevitable. The only question is how long that will be ... Make arrangements between now and June 1 that are necessary before you go to prison.”