Michael Cooper, a former Derbyshire Police detective chief inspector, has been jailed after admitting he caused the death of educational psychologist James Bane by dangerous driving, despite having been warned by a neurologist over a decade earlier to stop driving because of unexplained blackouts.
A former Derbyshire Police detective chief inspector has been jailed after a blackout at the wheel led to the death of a father-of-two, despite having been warned by a consultant neurologist more than ten years earlier to stop driving. Michael Cooper, 55, was behind the wheel of an unmarked police Peugeot 208 in Etwall, Derbyshire, when he struck James Bane, 50, and a woman standing near parked cars. Nottingham Crown Court heard Cooper had continued to drive for almost 20 years despite suffering repeated losses of consciousness. He was sentenced to three years and seven months in prison.
The collision
The crash took place on Egginton Road in Etwall on 28 September 2021, almost five years before Cooper was sentenced. The court heard that Cooper had almost fully depressed the accelerator as he approached Mr Bane and a woman who were standing beside their parked vehicles. The woman was struck at 28mph and thrown into the air, suffering serious physical injuries along with complex post-traumatic stress disorder. The car then ricocheted off the kerb and forced two parked vehicles together, crushing Mr Bane, who was standing between them. He died at the scene from catastrophic pelvic injuries.
Prosecutors said Cooper had been on a phone call to his girlfriend at the time, made without the car’s hands-free system, which ended five seconds before the impact. The judge did not find that Cooper had been distracted by the call. He was also not wearing a seatbelt. In the moments after the crash, Cooper appeared confused, telling members of the public he was a painter and decorator and that he did not know who the Prime Minister was.
Years of warnings ignored
The court heard that Cooper had been advised by a consultant neurologist as far back as 2009 to stop driving and to notify the DVLA about his unexplained blackouts. According to the Independent Office for Police Conduct, there was evidence he had been advised in writing on more than one occasion to inform the DVLA, but he failed to do so on each occasion. Prosecutor Samuel Skinner KC told the court Cooper should never have been driving that day given his long history of collapses. Cooper had also never informed his car insurer about the condition.
Cooper initially claimed he had never been advised of any “special thing to do” regarding his driving and refused to grant access to his medical records. He pleaded guilty shortly before his trial was due to begin, having initially denied responsibility, admitting causing Mr Bane’s death and seriously injuring the woman by dangerous driving.
Sentencing
Sentencing Cooper last week, Mr Justice Sweeting told him: “Your guilt lies in the decision to drive at all.” He added: “The risk may have been intermittent and unpredictable, but it was a risk you knew existed,” and said Cooper’s actions showed a “callous disregard of potential danger.” Cooper was jailed for three years and seven months for causing Mr Bane’s death, with a concurrent two-year sentence for causing serious injury to the woman. He showed no reaction in the dock. He has also been disqualified from driving and will be required to pass an extended driving test before he can drive again, should he ever be declared medically fit.
Misconduct findings
Separately, Cooper was found guilty of gross misconduct over his treatment of the unmarked police vehicle, which prosecutors said he had “treated as his own personal vehicle.” He was found to have carried unauthorised passengers and wrongly claimed fuel expenses while already receiving a car allowance. The Independent Office for Police Conduct said the misconduct panel concluded his misuse of the vehicle was “serious, protracted and an abuse of position for personal gain.”
Cooper resigned from Derbyshire Police before the misconduct hearing concluded; the panel ruled that, had he remained a serving officer, he would have been dismissed without notice. He has since been placed on the College of Policing’s barred list, preventing him from working for any police force in future. Derbyshire Police said the outcome of the misconduct hearing was not published at the time in order to avoid prejudicing the ongoing criminal proceedings, and was only released once the court case had concluded.
Reaction
Temporary Deputy Chief Constable Michelle Shooter said Cooper had “failed in his duties as both a police officer and as a citizen” by choosing to drive despite knowing about his medical condition. Following sentencing, the Independent Office for Police Conduct said Cooper had consciously chosen to drive despite his condition and had now been held accountable for his actions.
Mr Bane’s widow, Katherine, said in a statement: “When James was killed, everything I knew was ripped away. Our family unit was torn apart and every single thing about my life changed overnight.” The woman injured in the crash told the court she continues to suffer “extremely distressing” flashbacks, adding: “There has not been a single day since the incident that has been positive.”
In a letter read to the court by his barrister, Cooper said: “I can’t begin to imagine the unbearable pain and grief following the death of Mr Bane in particular. I’m deeply sorry.” Derbyshire Police described Mr Bane as a deeply respected educational psychologist whose sudden death had devastated his family, friends and colleagues, adding that no sentence could undo the harm caused by the crash.
