Man fined for driving off after crash (From Warrington Guardian)

Man fined for driving off after crash

A MAN has been found guilty of driving off from a crash scene, after appearing at court without a solicitor and defending himself.

Keith Worthington pulled out from Chapel Street onto Victoria Road in Widnes and was hit by a car, Runcorn Magistrates Court heard.

The driver of the other car, Shannon Hilton, said she was left shaken and with whiplash injuries after the accident on June 6 last year.

She said she saw Worthington drive off after briefly stopping in his boss's Nissan Bluebird.

Worthington, aged 36 and from Weaver Road in Weston, Runcorn, pleaded not guilty to driving without due care and attention, failing to stop after an accident and failing to report an accident.

Equipped with notepaper from a magistrate's note pad and a pen borrowed from the clerk, Worthington defended himself and said he had not noticed the impact, and would have stopped if he knew there had been a crash.

The magistrates accepted the evidence of Ms Hilton and found Worthington guilty of all offences.

They ordered Worthington, an employee at the household refuse site on Johnson's Lane, to pay a £520 fine, £300 compensation to Ms Hilton and £364 costs.