A woman who struck and killed a cyclist while driving with a frozen windscreen, speeding and under the influence of cocaine and cannabis has been jailed.
Anya Foster
Anya Foster, 32, of Gloucester Street in St Helens, was late for a 6am meeting when she left home at 6.18am on the morning of December 1, 2023.
She hit cyclist David Burrows, 59, from behind shortly afterwards on Island Brow in St Helens. Mr Burrows was clearly visible. He was wearing a high-visibility vest and a bicycle helmet, and both the front and rear lights were illuminated with a strong beam.
The impact of Foster’s car caused the wheels of his bicycle to collapse and his head to hit the windshield. Foster did not stop and continued her journey. It later emerged that she had been driving at a speed of 66 km/h in an area where the speed limit was 50 km/h.
Later that morning, Mr Burrows was discovered by a passerby who stopped and called an ambulance. Unfortunately, he never regained consciousness and died the same day.
Police received an anonymous call from someone saying Foster had told them she was involved in a collision.
When police arrived at her home, they saw her car with obvious damage to the windshield, parked close to the garage to avoid detection.
David Burrows
Foster was spoken to and accepted that she was the driver of the car and had been involved in a collision. She denied her windshield was frozen and said she tried to defrost the windshield for ten minutes before leaving.
She accepted she had hit something but said she had not stopped as she said she had seen the cyclist on his feet and so assumed he was fine. She said she was on her way to pick up her sister.
She was charged with causing death by reckless driving under the influence of drugs.
At a hearing at Liverpool Crown Court on November 5, 2024, she pleaded guilty to the charge and was sentenced to six years and eight months in prison. The sentence was reduced because of her guilty plea.
She was disqualified from driving for 11 years and 8 months and must take an extended retest before she can drive again.
Several victim personal statements from David Burrows’ relatives were read to the court.
One said: “The person responsible for this didn’t have the decency to stop, this is totally unbelievable and inexcusable.
“His life was cut short through no fault of his own, this is not something we will forget or forgive and will carry with us for the rest of our lives.”
Another said: “On December 1, 2023 my life was changed forever. My Uncle Dave left his house that morning to go to work, thinking he would come home, but he never did. You left my best friend, my Uncle David, on the side of the road, fighting for his life, alone in the dark, freezing.
“You not only killed my uncle that day, you also killed my family, his friends, his colleagues and many other people around him.
“When I got to the hospital and was told that your uncle was on life support and there was nothing they could do to help him, it broke me in many ways that I can’t describe. It was like the world was collapsing on me. I had ten minutes with him before I had to let him go forever. Ten minutes to tell him all the memories we had.
Senior Crown prosecutor Paul Shepherd, from CPS Mersey-Cheshire, said: “Anya Foster got behind the wheel of her car on that dark, icy morning, under the influence of cocaine and cannabis.
“The windscreen was frozen, but despite what she initially claimed, she left without properly defrosting the windscreen and could not see clearly.
“The Crown Prosecution Service’s case was that Anya Foster clashed with David Burrows because of these two factors.
“She compounded her criminality by leaving the scene of an accident and failing to stop to see if Mr Burrows was okay.
“This meant that David Burrows was left seriously injured and alone on the road for some time on a cold winter’s day.
“Her actions, which were a result of her being late for an appointment, have devastated Mr Burrow’s family, as is clear from their statements in court. And she has been in prison for several years now.
“The Crown Prosecution Service would like to express its condolences to the family of Mr Burrows.”