This is the horrifying moment an e-scooter yob runs a red light and crashes into a vet, leaving her with a broken skull as he flees the scene – as he avoids jail time.
Joseph Pedelty, 34, ran a red light which was ‘very clear to see’ before smashing into Raquel Delgado-Calo as she walked over a pedestrian crossing, a court heard.
Veterinary surgeon Ms Delgado-Calo said she felt like she had been ‘hit by a bus’, was left with a fractured skull, and suffered lacerations to her head and nose which have left ‘permanent’ scarring.
Dash-cam footage shows the moment reckless Pedelty hurtles into her at significant speed, before getting back on his scooter and riding off without checking on her.
The court heard Pedelty had gone on an e-scooter ride to ‘clear his head’ before the high impact collision in Portsmouth, Hants.
Joseph Pedelty, pictured outside Portsmouth Magistrates Court, Hants, where he was disqualified from the roads for 18 months after admitting causing injury by careless driving
Veterinary surgeon Ms Delgado-Calo said she felt like she had been ‘hit by a bus’, was left with a fractured skull, and suffered lacerations to her head and nose which have left ‘permanent’ scarring
On Wednesday he was disqualified from the roads for 18 months and handed a community order of the same length after admitting causing injury by careless driving.
At Portsmouth Magistrates’ Court, prosecutor Giles Fletcher said Ms Delgado-Calo and her partner had returned from a festive break with family before the incident on January 14 this year.
‘She had just returned from Spain with her partner,’ he said.
‘They caught the train from Gatwick and were going to Lidl for supplies.’
In a statement, Ms Delgado-Calo said: ‘We were walking and we were both pulling suitcases.
‘We approached a pedestrian crossing, just as we arrived the light was turning red and a car was stopping.
‘I turned right and took a step and I felt a big impact.
‘The feeling I now have is it was like a heavy slap to my face.
‘I was on the road thinking I had been hit by a bus.
‘I lifted my arms and legs to make sure I could move.
‘I could feel blood running down my face and what felt like meat between my teeth.
‘It was only then I realised I had had an accident. I was told I had been hit by a man riding an e-scooter and he had got back on the scooter and left.’
The court heard Pedelty had gone on an e-scooter ride to ‘clear his head’ before the high impact collision in Portsmouth, Hants
The footage shows Pedelty crashing into Ms Delgado-Calo as he skipped a red light when she was crossing the road
Pedelty is then seen falling to the ground himself as people nearby rush to help Ms Delgado-Calo
Pedelty ignores Ms Delgado-Calo and instead uses this moment as a chance to flee the scene
The court heard an ambulance arrived and took her to hospital, where she was treated for ‘deep lacerations’ to her forehead, stitches to her nose and a fractured skull during a three day stay.
Ms Delgado-Calo has been left with facial scarring which is ‘faded but will be permanent’ as a result.
Talking through dash-cam footage of the incident which was played to the court, Mr Fletcher said: ‘The defendant doesn’t stop when he’s on the scooter.
‘He is on a vehicle which is not insured.
‘He didn’t comply with a red light which was very clear to see.
‘He failed to stop at the scene and caused a serious injury.
‘He disappears.
‘You can see the surprise of the partner of the victim.’
In a victim impact statement, Ms Delgado-Calo said she had to take three weeks off work as a result and undertake another three-week phased return to work.
She said she had suffered from concussion for eight weeks and dizziness which caused her to cancel a surgery at work, as well as as ‘ongoing anxiety’ when crossing roads.
The court heard Pedelty has 10 previous convictions and was disqualified from roads after drink driving in 2021.
In mitigation, Roni Pittman, said he had gone got on the scooter to ‘clear his head’.
She told the court he put himself forward to police after a media appeal to find the e-scooter driver.
‘He was eager to put himself forward,’ she said, ‘he mistakenly did not see the seriousness of the incident at the time.
‘When the media call was put out there he was shocked and horrified at the injuries this lady had suffered.
‘He accepts his actions and this incident.’
Addressing him, chair magistrate Ryan Rutlidge criticised him for not stopping to check on his victim’s welfare.
However, taking into account his ‘remorse’ he made Pedelty the subject of an 18 -month community order – which require him to participate in 20 rehabilitation requirement activity days and alcohol treatment.
The magistrates disqualified him from driving – which includes e-scooters – for 18 months.
Pedelty, from Waterlooville, Hants, was also fined £120 and ordered to pay costs which take his total financial penalty to £319.
This sentence also incorporated charges of riding the scooter without insurance, failing to stop after an accident and failing to stop at a red light, which he also admitted.