Uber driver mowed down pedestrian outside Leeds Wetherspoon's
An Uber worker struck a man crossing the road in Leeds in a “dreadful misjudgement” of driving, leaving the victim with an open fracture to his leg.
The “entirely blameless” man was left in agony laid in the city-centre street after the vehicle drove over him at slow speed.
Driver Jimie Mohammedali Hamed admitted a charge of causing serious injury by careless driving at Leeds Crown Court.
The Uber car’s dashcam footage from around 11.20pm on December 7, 2024, was played for the court.
It showed the car turning out of South Parade onto Park Row, then turning slowly onto Bedford Street as the pedestrian was crossing near to Beckett’s Bank Wetherspoon’s pub.
The offside of the car collided with the man. The car then slowly ploughed into the wall opposite the pub.
The video showed a busy night on the Park Row area which prosecutor Emily Thorbjornsen pointing out the number of pubs and bars in that area.
The pedestrian required morphine at the scene before being taken to hospital, where he required surgery to the double leg fracture which left the bone protruding through the skin.
He needed a metal rod and screws inserted into his leg and knee to pin the bones in place, and awaits further surgery.
In a victim impact statement, the man said he remains in pain and has been unable to take part in marathon races, which he enjoys.
Hamed, of Potternewton Crescent, Leeds, was not interviewed by police until July of last year, in which he largely gave no-comment answers, aside from confirming he was working that night in December.
The 41-year-old has no previous convictions. The court heard that he had 4.9 out of 5 rating as an Uber driver and had completed more than 37,000 journeys, making him an experienced driver.
Mitigating, Soheil Khan said: “A lifelong lesson and a salutary one has been learned by Mr Hamed.
“He is genuinely remorseful for this offending.
“He just did not take enough care when undertaking the manoeuvre. It was a short-lived piece of driving on his part.”
He said it was “panic” that then caused him to career into the wall after hitting the pedestrian.
Mr Khan added: “I firmly believe he will never trouble the courts again.”
Judge Howard Crowson told Hamed: “We have all seen the footage. It was a very busy time of night with a large number of pedestrians.
“Your manner of driving convinces me that you were trying to avoid pedestrians. There was no lack of patience. You travelled at a very low speed.
“The only rational conclusion is that you did not see him. This was a dreadful misjudgement by you.”
He gave him a two-year community order with 167 hours of unpaid work to complete and 10 rehabilitation days with probation.
He also banned him from driving for 12 months.