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D A Y T H R E E - W E D N E S D A Y D A Y F O U R - T H U R S D A Y 2 2 C h a se r C o u rt , G re y h o u n d P a rk , C h e st e r T r i b u t e s l e f t t o v i c t i m s 5 C a f e - T h e m e d P a r t i e s C e r a m i c P a i n t i n g - G o - K a r t s T e l : 0 8 4 5 3 3 0 1 3 3 5 T R I A L i s e x a m i n i n g e v e n t s le a d i n g u p t o t h e c r a s h t h a t k i ll e d 1 6 -y e a r o ld s D o m i n i c W o o d a n d T r i s t a n C o o k . Friday 21st December 3.30pm–6pm,
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NEWS
4TheC
hron
icleDecem
ber7,2007
NEWS
5TheC
hron
icleDecem
ber7,2007
Two
youn
gd
riversare
this
week
ontrialfor
the
crashth
atkilled
their
former
schoolfrien
ds.
RE
BE
CC
AE
DW
AR
DS
reports
oneven
tsin
the
firstfou
rd
aysin
court
ONMonday,prosecu
torstold
Chester
CrownCourtthecra
shwas‘anaccid
entwaitin
gto
happen’.
MichaelWoodwasindicted
with
anew
chargeofdangero
us
drivingandhepleadedguilty,
butsubmitted
abasis
ofplea
statem
entsayinghewasnot
drivingdangero
usly
onpublic
roads.Hestill
denies
achargeof
causingdeathbydangero
us
driving.
Matthew
GeorgeFerg
uson,of
Little
HeathRoad,Christleto
n,
also
18,denies
driving
dangero
usly.
Outlin
ingthecase,
prosecu
tor
OwenEdwardssaidWoodlost
controlafter
takingtwo
consecu
tivebendsnear
DragonhallontheA41atspeed
.MrEdwardstoldthecourt:
“Theprosecu
tionsaythe
drivingofthese
youngmen
beforethecollisio
nwas
dangero
us.Inparticu
lar,the
drivingatBroxtoninthatcar
parkspeaksvolumesabout
their
driving.
“Itisn’tthemostdifficu
ltbend
–acarefu
ldriverwouldhave
takenacco
untofthefactthe
VolkswagonPolowasfully
laden,itwasdarkanddamp.
“Theywouldhavetakennotice
ofanyearlier
lossofcontrol.
“TheCrownsaysWooddoes
noneofthese
things.Hetook
riskafter
riskafter
riskuntil
hetookarisk
toofar.
“Itwashisfrien
ds,tragically,
whopaidwith
their
lives.”
Thejuryheardevidencefrom
ScottAjerlo
,ofHuntington,the
onlysurvivingrea
r-seat
passen
gerinWood’sVWPolo.
Hesaid:“Asweapproachedthe
bendIrem
emberasuddenjolt
ofthecar,which
iswhenwe
begantolosecontrol.Therea
rendofthecarspuntotheright
thenthere
wasajoltwhich
caused
ustospinagainand
turnafullU-turn.
“Icouldsee
headlightsofacar
comingfromtheBroxton
directio
n.There
wasajoltthat
forced
usupthenwehitthe
tree.“W
henwestoppedIwentto
reachformysea
tbelttogetout
butthenbeca
meunconscio
us.
“Someonestarted
topullme
outofthevehicle
bymyarm
but
Icametoandcraw
ledout
myself.”
Prosecu
ting,OwenEdwards
said:“BythisstageDanny
Wilso
nandWesley
Hardywere
there.
Theywere
concern
edaboutyou–itappeared
as
thoughyouwere
bleed
ing,butit
wasn’tyourblood.”
MrAjerlo
toldthecourtthat
onthewaytoBroxtonMichael
Woodhadoverta
kentwocars
justbeforeacorner.
After
thecra
shRobert
Shacklady,ofBoughton,who
hadbeen
inthefrontsea
tof
Wood’scar,toldhisfrien
dsto
sayWoodhadbeen
drivingat
30mph.
MrAjerlo
toldthecourt:“I
didn’tsayanythingatthetim
e,butIrem
emberthinkingthat’s
ridiculous.Hewastryingto
coverupforhisbuddy.”
DAYONE-MONDAY
DAYTWO-TUESDAY
TWELVEjurorsvisited
the
crashscen
eonTuesd
ay
morning.
TheA41wasclosed
forabout
10minutes
asjurorswalked
around40metres
fromthe
entranceofDragonhallesta
teto
thetree
thecarhitafter
itspun
outofcontrol.
Orangeflowers,
ribbonsand
cardsmarkthetree
thatthecar
hit.OnTuesd
ayaftern
oonthejury
heardthatDominicArnoldwas
notsupposed
totrav
elhomein
thecarhedied
in,butjumpedin
minutes
beforethecra
sh.
Robert
Shacklady,19,of
Boughton,whowassittin
ginthe
frontpassen
gersea
tofWood’s
car,saidDominichadbeen
leftbehindatBroxtoncarparkand
ranovertothecarasitleft.
MrShacklady,aChristleto
nHighSchoolsixth-formeratthe
time,explainedhewasinshock
when,after
thecra
sh,hetoldhis
friendstosaytheywere
travellin
gat30mph.
Hesaid:“Ididn’thaveaclea
rheadonmeatall,Ihadjustbeen
inacarcra
sh.
“Ihaveapologised
forsayingit,
Ididn’tevenknowwhatIwas
doingatthetim
e.“Isaiditbeca
useIdidn’twant
Woodytogetintotrouble,but
with
thesignifica
nceofthe
accid
entyoucan’tdothat.”
DAYTHREE-WEDNESDAY
ANATIONALgo-kartin
gchampionwastheonlyteen
age
driverwhodidnotperfo
rmstuntsinhiscaronDecem
ber9
lastyear,acourtheard.
TonyBentley
-Roberts,
18,of
Ledsham,whowastheninthe
uppersixthform
atChristleto
nHighSchool,drov
eaLand
RoverFreela
nder.
Hesaidhedidnotsee
Ferg
usondoingstuntsat
Sainsbury’s.
MrBentley
-Roberts
saidthe
convoydrov
eoffathighspeed
toBroxtoncarpark,sohesoon
lostthem
andhadtoaskfor
directio
ns.
MrBentley
-Roberts
andChris
Laidler
were
thefirst
carsto
leavethecarparkatjustbefore
midnightandexpected
Wood
andFerg
usontofollow.
MrBentley
-Roberts
said:“I
keptcheck
ingmymirro
rsexpectin
gtosee
them
catch
up.
Eventually
wedecid
edtoturn
backandfoundthescen
eofthe
collisio
n.”
IrishHGVdriverLauren
ceDowlingsaidBroxtoncarpark
turnedinto‘theWild
West’
as
theteen
agers
didhandbrake
turnsand‘hunted’drivers
they
believ
edtobedoggers
by
blockingtheir
pathand
shoutingobscen
ities.Hewrotedowntheir
registra
tiondetailsafter
seeing
Matthew
Ferg
usonrev
ersehis
VWGolf‘aggressiv
ely’towards
hisHGVashetried
toturn
around.
Minutes
after
heleft
thepicnic
area
at12.07amhesaw
oncomingcarsflashtheir
headlights.Hesaid:“Ithought
tomyself
Iguarantee
itisoneof
thosecarsthathasbeen
inan
accid
ent,andIwasright.”
Passen
gers
inFerg
uson’sVW
Golfdescrib
edwatchingin
horro
rasWood’scarlost
control.
Wesley
Hardy,ofHuntington,
whowasinamiddlerea
rsea
t,toldthecourtonWednesd
ay
aftern
oon:“Thecarwent
completely
outofcontroland
dida180sotheheadlights
shonethroughourwindows,
thenhitthekerb
andwentup
intothehedge.Whenitwasin
theairitbegantobarrel-ro
llandhitthetree.”
Front-sea
tpassen
gerDaniel
Wilso
nsaidthethree
boyswere
concern
edtosee
Wood’srea
rwheels
slideonabend
immediately
beforethecra
shbend.
MrWilso
nsaidFerg
uson
reacted
tothesightbysaying:
“Woody’sdrivinglikeasick
o.”
Wood’scounsel
areexpected
todenythecarlostcontrolonthe
firstbend,andsaythecra
shwasatragicaccid
entbeyond
Wood’scontrol.
Citro
enSaxodriverChris
Laidler
saidhehadasked
Robert
Shackladytotell
MichaelWoodto‘calmdown’
after
whathethoughtwasa
dangero
usoverta
kenearabend
onthewaytoBroxton.
Butheadmitted
takingpartin
handbraketurnsandwheel
spins–andsaidhehasnever
been
interv
iewedbythepolice
forthechargesfaced
by
Matthew
Ferg
uson.
Seein-depth
coverage,dailyupdates
onthe
courtcaseand
anniversarytributes
onwww.cheste
rchronicle.co.uk
Followthisstoryonline
DAYFOUR-THURSDAY
ATEENAGERsay
sMichaelWooddrove
atupto70m
phinHooleandBoughtonanddid
handbraketurnshoursbeforehiscar
crashed,killin
gtwo16-yea
r-olds.
Butten
monthspassed
after
Dominic
ArnoldandTrista
nCookwere
killed
onthe
A41beforetheir
friendSamDooley
told
police
hetravelled
intheVWPoloon
Decem
ber9lastyea
r.HetoldChester
Crow
nCourtonThursday
hewasafraidhisparen
tswouldbeangry
with
himbecausetheybannedhimfrom
goinginfrien
ds’ca
rs.Barristers
suspect
hewanted
toprotect
hisfrien
dDuncanMcCann,whowas
drivingwithoutalicen
cethatnight.
Crashvictim
Trista
nCookwaswith
Sam
Dooley
inWood’sVWGolfdrivingfroma
party
inHamilto
nStreet,H
oole,to
Sainsbury’scarparkatabout10p
m.
OnThursdayMrDooley
said:“Hewas
talkingabouthisnew
carandsaidithada
great
handbrake,th
ensaid‘Watch
this’
andpulled
ahandbraketurntogetoffthe
BarsroundabouttoBoughton.
“Trista
n[Cook]waslaughingbutIthink
itwasmoreanervo
uslaughandhewas
justgoingalongwith
it.“Woodaccelerated
offthroughBoughton
at60-70m
phthentow
ardstheSainsbury’s
roundaboutwhich
hehitatspeed
.“Ifelt
ajudderin
gfromthetyres
losing
grip
buthemanagedtocontrolitandwent
downtow
ardsCaldyValley,w
here
hedida
handbraketurnaroundthemini
roundaboutagain.Ifelt
relievedwhenthe
journeywasover.”
MrDooley
thenwentinMrMcCann’scar
toBrox
toncarpark,where
hesay
steen
sdonnedBalaclava
sandturnedoff
headligh
tstoscare‘doggers’.T
hepairsleft
beforetheothercarsanddidnotknow
aboutthecrashuntilthenextday.
Wood’sdefen
cebarrister,M
arkLeBrocq,
askedMrDooley
whyhehadn’tcome
forwardearlier.
Hesaid:“W
henIlookbackatitIknow
itwasastupidthingtodo.Iwasjustworried
whatwouldhappenifIcameforward.”
Hedenied
wantingtoprotect
MrMcCann.
MrLeBrocq
said:“S
ixweek
sago,10
monthson,you
rcon
sciencegot
thebetter
ofyou
andyou
madeastatem
enttothepolice.
“Butbecauseyouhave
been
wrackedwith
guiltofnotcomingforwardearlier
you
have
completely
exaggerated
thenatu
reof
MichaelWood’sdrivinghaven
’tyou?”
MrDooley
replied
:“No.Absolutely
not.”
DuncanMcCanntoldthecourthehad
perfo
rmedstuntsonSainsbury’sand
Brox
toncarparks,b
uthehasnotbeen
interv
iewedbypolice
forthesamecharges
asMatth
ewFergu
son.
MrMcCannhasbeen
interv
iewedby
police
fornotdisclo
singhedidnothave
alicen
ceatthetim
eofthecrash.
OnThursdaythecourtalso
heard
evidencefromcarpassen
gers
Emma
CunninghamandAmyWooley
whosay
theysaw
MichaelWoodrunthroughared
traffic
lightinBoughton.
AT
RIA
Lis
examin
ing
events
leading
up
toth
ecrash
that
killed16-year
oldsD
omin
icW
oodan
dT
ristanC
ook.M
ichaelJam
esW
ood,of
Woodlands
Drive,C
hester,admitted
dangerousdriv-
ingon
Sainsbury’sand
Broxton
carparks
butdeniescausing
bydeath
bydangerous
drivingon
theA
41in
hisV
WPolo.
Matth
ewG
eorgeFergu
son,
ofL
ittleH
eathR
oad,C
hristleton
,also
18,w
asdrivin
ga
VW
Golf
and
denies
dan-
gerous
driving
onth
eFocu
scar
park,T
arvinR
oad,at
Broxton
carpark
and
onth
eA
41.A
jury
atC
hester
Crow
nC
ourt
this
week
heard
agrou
pof
sixth-form
ersh
elda
partyin
Ham
iltonStreet,H
ooleon
Saturday,
Decem
ber9,
but
itw
asbroken
up
bypolice
at9.30pm
.Sixteen
teenagers
infive
carsth
enm
etin
Sainsbu
ry’scar
park,Bou
ghton
then
wen
ttoB
roxtoncar
parkto
‘win
du
p’peopleth
eybelieved
were
doggers.T
he
group
leftB
roxtonC
arP
arkat
aroun
dm
idnigh
tan
dh
eadedh
ome
toC
hester.
At12.07am
Mich
aelWood
lostcontrol
ofh
iscar
onth
eleft-h
and
bend
byD
ragonh
all,n
earto
Jackson’sT
imber
and
Dragon
hallP
oliceStation
.T
he
carspu
n180
degrees,hit
asign
,th
ena
kerban
dbecam
eairborn
e,hit-
ting
atree,
spinn
ing
inth
eair
and
landin
gon
itsroof.
Tristan
Cook,16,w
hosefather
Hadyn
Cook
andm
otherM
erielPritchard
livein
Waverton
andL
ittleton,was
inthe
rearnearside
seatanddied
atthescene.
Dom
inic
Arn
old,also16,ofB
ough
ton,
wh
osestep-fath
eris
dentist
Dam
ienM
urphy
ofC
hristleton’s
Rock
Hou
seden
talpractice,was
sitting
nextto
him
.H
ew
astaken
toth
eC
oun
tessofC
hester
hospital,w
here
he
diedju
stafter
3am.
The
trial,involvingup
to20
witnesses,
isexpected
tolastuntilnextW
ednesday.
Teenagedrivers
inthe
dockover
nightof
A41
tragedies
■P
amP
ud
vine:AYear
on...Beautiful
boyswhowillbe
lovedand
missed
foreverbutliving
inthe
heartsofso
many
-Tillw
eallm
eetagain.■
Aleen
a:Imiss
youTris
andDom
somuch.and
everyday
ithinkofyou.this
shouldntofhappened.youshould
stillbehere.iw
ishicould
justspendahour
withyou
bothfor
onelasttim
e.wemight
ofoutlivedyou,butyour
memories
will
outliveus.love
youboth
r.i.p.■
Gib
bs
family:
Meriel,H
aydyn,Briony,
Tamsin,and
allthefam
ily:Weare
thinkingofyou
especiallynow
asthe
yearcom
estoanend,and
hopethat
youcan
drawsom
ecom
fortfromthe
factthatsomany
peopleare
sharingyour
sorrow.W
erem
ember
bothboys
always,and
sendour
loveand
respect.
Tributeslefttovictim
s
CRASHSCENE:MichaelW
ood’sVWGolfleftthe
roadnear
Dragonhallon
theA41and
struckthis
tree,landingupside
downinthe
field.(Inset-top
tobottom
)Victim
Dominic
Arnold,
defendantMichaelJam
esWood,victim
Tristan
Cook
anddefendantM
atthewGeorge
Ferguson.
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