Uninsured Willenhall driver accused of causing judge’s death may face new trial

Prosecutors will decide whether an uninsured driver accused of causing the death of a judge as he
crossed a busy road should face a fresh trial after jurors failed to reach a verdict.

District judge Matthew Mawdsley, a father-of-three from Manchester, had been appointed to the role in Birmingham just weeks before he suffered fatal injuries in a collision on the A38 Aston Expressway in the city on December 16 2022.

The 54-year-old was returning back to his hotel, where he was staying due to train strikes, after a Christmas celebration with his district judge colleagues when he attempted to cross the four-lane carriageway at around 10pm and was hit by a number of vehicles.

Elliott Nash, 33, was on trial at Birmingham Crown Court accused of causing death by driving while uninsured, with jurors hearing he was on his way home to Willenhall after working at a Christmas market when his car “clipped” Mr Mawdsley as he crossed the A-road, causing him to fall to the ground.

Nash did not stop and his vehicle was recovered hours later at his home address by police investigating the crash.

Prosecutor Phillip Bradley KC told the trial Nash has already pleaded guilty to driving without insurance and failing to stop at the scene of a collision at a previous hearing.

Following the trial, the jury of six men and six women started their deliberations but failed to reach a verdict.

Judge Sarah Buckingham adjourned the case until March 4, with the Crown Prosecution Service set to decide whether Nash should face a new trial on the charge of causing death by driving while uninsured.