A police officer burst into tears as he was cleared of killing a female motorist during a 93mph high-speed pursuit of another driver.
PC Matthew Pike, 40, was chasing down Lewis Griffin, 23, in his white Volkswagen Tiguan through the streets of Bristol city centre just before midnight on November 4, 2021.
PC Pike reached nearly 100mph in his unmarked BMW police car as he tracked down Griffin, Bristol Crown Court heard.
The chase came to an abrupt end when Griffin smashed into Dr Keryl Johnson’s Honda Jazz at Newfoundland Circus.
The 35-year-old woman was seriously injured and rushed to hospital where she died several days later.
Griffin was jailed for eight years in February 2024 after he admitted causing death by dangerous driving. He was also banned from driving for 10 years.
PC Pike was then later charged with causing death by dangerous driving, and an alternative charge of causing death by careless driving.
Jocelyn Ledward KC, prosecuting, previously told the court that while Griffin’s driving was the ‘primary and immediate cause’ of Dr Johnson’s death, Pike’s driving was also ‘dangerous and contributed to, and so in terms of law, caused her death’, The Telegraph reported.
PC Matthew Pike, 40, burst into tears when he was cleared of killing Dr Keryl Johnson after the crash in the high-speed chase (pictured earlier this month)
Lewis Griffin, 23, crashed his white Volkswagen into Dr Keryl Johnson’s car before getting out and running off on foot
However, Judge Edward Burgess KC found the evidence did not stand up and ordered the jury not return a guilty verdict in court, describing the case as ‘dreadfully difficult, incredibly sad and utterly tragic’.
Addressing the jury, he said: ‘My decision as the judge of the law, that looking at this as a whole, the evidence in this case is not sufficient to allow any jury to find that the defendant Matthew Pike drove dangerously or drove carelessly.
‘This is because [the] prosecution expert witness told you that, in his opinion, as an expert in police pursuits, training and driving, Matthew Pike did not drive dangerously and did not drive carelessly at any stage during the pursuit of the VW Tiguan.
‘On the contrary, put simply he said Matthew Pike did his job as he was trained to do it.
‘As a result, it is my decision that on both counts, Matthew Pike must now be found not guilty.’
The pursuit began when PC Pike switched on his blue lights to pull Griffin over but he sped off instead.
After the high-speed chase and the deadly crash, PC Pike stopped to help Dr Johnson at the scene while his colleague PC Davis got out and ran after Griffin on foot, arresting him in a nearby car park.
Dr Keryl Johnson died of her injuries in hospital several days after the crash
PC Pike drove at an average of 70mph between Dean Street and Wilder Street in the centre of Bristol, prosecutors previously told the court
Griffin clocked 90mph and PC Pike 93mph when they reached Old Market roundabout, the court heard
The prosecutor previously said PC Pike had acted ‘bravely, professionally and selflessly, and entirely in accordance with his duties as a police officer, in what must have been absolutely dreadful moments.’
PC Pike was trained to the highest level of police driving, received all relevant refresher training and was authorised for pursuit driving, the jury heard.
Det Supt Larisa Hunt, head of the professional standards department at Avon and Somerset Police, said the force’s ‘thoughts and sympathies are first and foremost with the family of the victim of this collision, who’ve been through an unimaginable ordeal.’
She explained that the charges against PC Pike had arisen after an investigation by the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC).
DS Hunt added: ‘The officer has been waiting for the outcome of this criminal investigation for four years, and it’s right to say this delay has had a significant impact on him.
‘We’ll continue to ensure he has the support he needs in place.’
The force will be speaking to the IOPC on what will happen following PC Pike’s acquittal.