Gerard Farrelly mowed down three women at Mulberry Walk shopping centre (Image: BirminghamLive)
A motorist ploughed into three women, resulting in one mother losing her leg, after making a simple mistake in his new electric BMW.
Company CEO Gerard Farrelly, 67, created a ‘scene from a horror movie’ when he forgot to put his iX xDrive50 M Sport into ‘park’ and accidentally pressed the accelerator at Mulberry Walk shopping centre in Mere Green, Sutton Coldfield on December 21, 2022.
The error caused the car, which he had only owned for a few weeks, to surge forward and collide with Moyra Thornton, who was on a pedestrian walkway directly in front of him.
The BMW then struck Lucy Woodall, a mother-of-two, who was loading the boot of her Mercedes, trapping her leg between the two vehicles. Her leg was subsequently amputated. The third victim, Nidha Agrawal, also a mother-of-two and a GP, was knocked over when Ms Woodall’s Mercedes was pushed forward.
Three women were rushed to hospital after the incident (Image: BirminghamLive)
Farrelly, of Ellsmore Meadow in Aldridge, Walsall, initially claimed there had been a ‘vehicle malfunction’ but ultimately pleaded guilty to three charges of causing serious injury by careless driving after an investigation established he was at fault , reports Birmingham Live.
He received a nine-month sentence, suspended for 18 months, at Birmingham Crown Court on Friday, May 16 and was banned from driving for a year.
Judge Neil Chawla stated that Farrelly ‘misplaced’ his trust in the car despite not fully understanding its operation. Farrelly parked at Mullberry Walk around 3.30pm on the day in question.
Naomi Nelson-Cofie, prosecuting, told the court: “He came to a stop. His seatbelt was removed and not replaced. He wasn’t wearing a seatbelt.”
She continued: “After a few seconds of being stationary there is no dispute now that the defendant must have placed his foot on the accelerator and lurched forward at speed.”
The jury was shown footage from the BMW’s onboard cameras. Ms Cofie reported that Farrelly stayed at the scene and was ‘at pains to tell everyone it was a vehicle malfunction’, noting he gave the same explanation during his police interview.
An expert in Germany examined the BMW. Ms Nelson-Cofie explained: “Their conclusion was that Mr Farrelly, having become stationary, didn’t apply the electric parking brake or turn the vehicle off.
“The vehicle remained stationary due to auto-hold. Inadvertent application of the accelerator will release auto-hold and the vehicle will accelerate at a rate proportionate to the accelerator pedal.”
Earlier that day, Ms Woodall had enjoyed a visit to the park with her daughters before going shopping.
Her leg was trapped between the two vehicles, leading to an emergency operation to save it, but she was informed it needed to be amputated below the knee.
The amputation took place on December 27, but complications meant she required a further amputation above the knee on January 11, 2023.
Gerard Farrelly leaves Birmingham Crown Court (Image: Nick Wilkinson/Birmingham Live)
Ms Woodall expressed in a statement that the crash had an ‘immense’ impact on her life. She recounted that her family was forced to move in with her parents because her own home became unsuitable.
Ms Woodall also detailed the struggles she faced at work, not to mention the toll on her mental health, her children and her husband.
She said: “It has taken away my independence. I am unable to drive, unable to go anywhere and I have to rely on people to help me upstairs.
“I’m unable to complete basic chores like cooking, cleaning and washing. It’s not me. I used to be very fit and active. I went to a running club. I’ve run marathons and half marathons.”
She added: “I can’t believe how much life changed from one trip to the shops.”
Ms Thornton ended up at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital with both legs broken. Permanent rods, plates, and screws were fitted to aid her recovery.
Gerard Farrelly leaves Birmingham Crown Court annexe. (Image: Nick Wilkinson/Birmingham Live)
Ms Thornton spoke too of her lost autonomy, rendered unable to perform everyday tasks or enjoy pastimes such as aerobics and pilates.
The Commonwealth Games volunteer mourned the permanent cessation of activities she loved and confided her newfound trepidation around cars. Every day, haunted by the incident, she said: “I can’t stop thinking ‘why me?’ every day,”.
Ms Agrawal sustained torn ligaments as well as damage to her foot and ankle which required her to use crutches for six weeks.
In her statement the GP described the disruption it caused at work and to patients.
Farrelly is the CEO of his own company which is responsible for the installation of lighting at central Government offices in Whitehall.
Richard Thyne, defending, told the court he was ‘devastated’ at the consequences of the collision.
He remarked: “He genuinely believed something had gone wrong and it’s a fact that, once the evidence had been served indicating he must have been at fault and the defence expert had been granted access to the vehicle, there has been an immediate change of plea (to guilty).”
The barrister confirmed Farrelly had never previously committed a crime, had an otherwise good driving record and was a carer for his wife while having his own health issues.
Judge Chawla concluded Farrelly had been driving in an ‘entirely appropriate manner’ prior to parking, but said: “What occurred in the next few seconds can only be described as a scene from a horror movie, except it played out in reality.”
He confirmed the driver’s ‘failure’ was to simply put the car in park mode and told him: “You are sincerely sorry for the harm you have caused.
“Your actions were not a result of you driving at speed, deliberately, maliciously or intending to cause harm.
“Rather a lack of understanding of the mechanical behaviour of a new electric car. A car you misplaced all of your trust.”
As part of his sentence Farrelly was ordered to carry out 20 days of rehabilitation activity and the Stepping Stones toolkit as well as pay £1,000 in prosecution costs.
Judge Chawla confirmed he would not award any compensation to the victims, explaining: “It is more appropriate that is dealt with through insurance as all three victims will no doubt bring a claim for personal injury.
“That court will be best placed to deal with that aspect carefully, properly and fully. I don’t want to prejudice that.”