Adam Jones: How fight for justice unravelled and left dead teen's parents shattered
"I come to this conclusion with a heavy heart. To lose a child is perhaps life's greatest blow, from which some parents never recover."
As Judge Michael Challinor delivered his decision, the worst fears of the family of Adam Jones were confirmed.
A near-two-year fight for justice, a battle they felt they were close to winning, had been snatched away.
It was a crushing blow for the family who had waited more than a year for someone to be charged in connection with the 15-year-old's death only to then see the case collapse.
Adam was killed after being hit by a Volkswagen Bora while crossing the road on his bike at the junction of Beacon View Road and Walsall Road in West Bromwich in March 2015.
He was propelled through the windscreen, leaving him with catastrophic injuries from which he died at the scene. The youngster had been on his way to tend to horses at Sandwell Valley Country Park, where he was due to start an apprenticeship.
MORE: Driver cleared over teenager's death as court case collapses
At the wheel of the VW had allegedly been Tyrone Sadler, 25, who had no driving licence or insurance.
It was explained at Wolverhampton Crown Court yesterday that Sadler would not face a trial over Adam's death as there was not enough evidence to build a case against him.
West Midlands Police had charged him with causing death by driving a vehicle while unlicensed and causing death by driving a vehicle while uninsured.
Sadler had denied both charges at Sandwell Magistrates Court in August.
The family had seen their hopes raised by being promised a day in court, only to see them suddenly dashed as Sadler walked free – smiling and with his thumbs up.
Police have said the case will now be reviewed to see if any more charges will be brought but, as it stands, no-one will face criminal charges over the teenager's death.
Despite the conclusion of experts that Sadler could not be blamed for causing Adam's death, the ruling will be a bitter pill to swallow for the family, particularly as the driver had no licence or insurance and ran off after the crash.
Adam's devastated mother and father, Mandy Ruston and Mark Jones, from Friar Park, Wednesbury, led a long and desperate campaign to find the man who caused her son's death, vowing never to give up until the person responsible was behind bars.
It was a fight backed by Adam's beloved West Bromwich Albion, with goalkeeper Ben Foster issuing an appeal for information on behalf of the club and messages shown to thousands of fans on the big screen at The Hawthorns.
Judge Challinor said he had sympathy for the family but that there was not enough evidence to prove Sadler was at fault.
The court heard how Sadler, of the Oval, Smethwick, had allegedly been travelling behind a silver Ford Focus which swerved to avoid Adam, who had apparently been doing a 'wheelie' on his bike, meaning the driver would only have seen the teenager at the last moment.
Experts concluded he would have had less than a second to react before the collision.
CCTV footage also showed the car was being driven at the 40mph speed limit 500 metres before the crash.
Judge Challinor said Sadler could be 'criticised heavily' for his behaviour but that he could not be legally blamed for the crash, despite protests from prosecutor Mr Robert Price that his actions following the crash suggested he was not entirely innocent.
While it was all smiles for Sadler as he left court yesterday, emotions could not have been more contrasting for the distraught family. In an interview with the Express & Star last year, a devastated Ms Ruston said: "Our lives totally changed in a split second.
"One minute we were a happy, bubbly family. Adam had everything to live for. Ten minutes after he left the house we had nothing.
"Everything stopped for us that evening."
