A grandmother has spoken of the moment she tried to stop a man from driving illegally – only for him to drag her along underneath the vehicle.
Carolann Forrest was anxious that Dillan Neil – her daughter’s ex-boyfriend – would drive alone despite only having a provisional licence, so took a picture of him on her phone.
But the 22-year-old grabbed her phone and then reversed the vehicle without warning, dragging Mrs Forrest along.
Aberdeen Sheriff Court heard that Neil reversed the car from a driveway on to Springhill Road, forcing other drivers to brake to avoid him and Mrs Forrest.
As a result of being dragged along the ground, Mrs Forrest suffered severe grazing to her back and had to be treated at Aberdeen Royal Infirmary. She has since made a full recovery after the incident on July 19 2018.
Mrs Forrest, a self-employed hairdresser with two children and a grandchild, told The Evening Express: “It was a horrific thing to go through.
“I was extremely lucky that I didn’t end up going under the wheels.
“He only has a provisional licence and I knew he shouldn’t be driving alone. I got my phone out to take a picture of him and he grabbed it so I kind of fell half into the car and was dragged along when he reversed on to the road.
“The next thing I knew I was on the road with cars braking. It was quite chaotic and scary. I remember thinking ‘oh my god’. My husband called the police.”
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Neil, whose address was given in court as Clifton Road, Aberdeen, admitted driving dangerously by reversing at speed and without warning while Mrs Forrest was partially in the vehicle, causing her to be thrown from the car on to the ground and to be injured.
The charge also stated that his driving caused other road users to have to take evasive action in order to avoid a collision with him.
During the hearing Sheriff Graeme Napier said: “I understand he was trying to get away from his ex-girlfriend’s mum, Mrs Forrest, but she was aware that he should not have been driving.”
Neil told police: “I accept it was an extremely stupid and dangerous thing to do.”
Sheriff Napier added: “I would be justified in sending you to prison due to the dangerous way you drove this vehicle, but I am not going to do that.”
Neil was banned from driving for 15 months and told he must pass an extended test before being able to drive again. He was also ordered to stay home each evening for six months under restriction of liberty.
Mrs Forrest said: “I am not saying he deserves prison, but it doesn’t sound like a very strong sentence.
“He is not a very nice person, but he doesn’t mean anything to me and therefore I have refused to let his actions upset me.”
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