Worker faces judge after driving into colleague at Land Rover dealership

A worker at a Land Rover dealership in Scotland has just been convicted in relation to a tragic incident when he reversed into a colleague and the collision left him with brain damage.

The incident occurred at Taggarts Land Rover in Thornliebank, Glasgow, in May 2021, when a Range Rover Evoque was being moved out of a car wash bay.

Glasgow Sheriff Court was told that the colleague had a car which needed washing urgently before a customer arrived to collect it, so Stewart Thornton - described as a salesman in court reports but since described by Lookers as a valeter employed by a third party valeting firm - agreed to move the Evoque he was in out of the valet bay at the Lookers-owned dealership. 

As Thornton reversed the rear of the car struck the colleague, who fell to the ground and struck his head.

The colleague, 51-year-old Karl O'Donnell, was rushed to hospital where doctors determined he had sustained a severe traumatic brain injury, he was in a coma and underwent emergency surgery. In an interview afterwards Thornton told police: “I was driving, I don’t know what happened, he wanted in to wash his car and I reversed out. 

Thornton added: “I feel sick.”

The court heard Thornton had not looked over his left shoulder and hadn't seen his colleague.

Jurors convicted Thornton, aged 40, of Barrhead, of causing serious injury by dangerous driving. He was bailed to return for sentencing next month.

Defence advocate David Nicolson told the jury that his client had been doing the victim “a favour” before the collision.

“Mr Thornton got out of the wash bay and he was criticised for assuming Karl O'Donnell went back into his car ready to go in the wash bay.”