RAF Lakenheath US servicewoman 'didn't see' Norfolk biker before pullling into his path, court told

An American servicewoman driving home from work killed a motorcyclist after pulling out of a junction and into his path because she failed to see him, a court has heard.

Airman first class Mikayla Hayes, 25, is charged with causing the death of motorcyclist Matthew Day by careless driving while travelling home from her base at RAF Lakenheath.

The father-of-one died of his injuries after Hayes' red Honda Accord collided with the Yamaha motorbike he was riding on the A10 in Norfolk, on 26 August last year.

Hayes was heard by a witness saying “I didn’t see him” after the crash, the opening of her trial at Norwich Crown Court was told.

She had been travelling from RAF Lakenheath in Suffolk to her home in Downham Market in Norfolk when the crash happened.

Rachel Scott, prosecuting, said witnesses stated that Hayes emerged from the B1160 Lynn Road turning right on to the A10 at Southery in Norfolk, towards Downham Market.

Ms Scott said the collision happened just before 4pm and driving conditions were good.

She said traffic was “fairly heavy which was normal for that time of afternoon on a Friday”.

The prosecutor said that Hayes pulled into the path of the motorbike as it approached and Mr Day was “thrown into the air and landed in the mouth of the Lynn Road junction”.

She said a witness who was driving in front of Mr Day on the A10 said the motorcyclist was matching her speed, which was “well under 60mph”.

Ms Scott said a second witness, an experienced motorcyclist who was waiting behind Hayes at the junction in Lynn Road, said he “saw her head turning from side to side” as she waited.

The witness said he saw Mr Day’s motorbike approaching and saw Hayes drive forward and collide with Mr Day’s motorbike.

Another witness, who was on his way home from work when he saw the aftermath of the collision and stopped, said Hayes “kept saying ‘I didn’t see him’”, said Ms Scott.

The prosecutor said the witness reported that Hayes “said ‘I stopped, looked both ways, pulled out and didn’t see him’”.

In an interview with police she said she was driving home from work taking her “normal route home”.

“She said she looked both ways and saw a clear passageway both left and right, looked again to make sure it was clear then pulled out,” Ms Scott said.

The defendant reported that she saw Mr Day’s motorbike when she was “at the halfway point of her turn”, Ms Scott said, and he hit her car.

Ms Scott said Hayes said the colour of the motorbike “appeared to blend into the road and sky”.

Both vehicles were examined and no faults were found that would have contributed to the collision.

Hayes was breathalysed and drugs tested and the results were both negative, and there was no evidence she was using her phone, Ms Scott said.

She said tests on Mr Day found a “low concentration of THC”, indicating he had taken cannabis at some point before the collision.

“The evidence doesn’t suggest he failed to react appropriately when Miss Hayes pulled out in front of him,” Ms Scott said.

She said that experts for the defence and prosecution agree that “nothing about the road, the weather or the driving conditions was a factor”.

“They also agree that the main cause of the collision was Miss Hayes pulling out from a side road into the path of a motorbike that had priority,” said Ms Scott.

She said that experts disagree about how many seconds there were between Hayes pulling out and the collision, and how many seconds Mr Day had to react.

“The issue at the heart of this case is whether the defendant’s driving fell below the standard expected of a careful and competent driver,” said Ms Scott.

“The prosecution case is there’s no good reason why Miss Hayes didn’t see Mr Day’s motorbike.”

The trial continues.

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