A WOMAN who ran over an Essex Police officer after being stopped for speeding has been sentenced to 30 months in jail – which the severely injured officer says is \u201ca very small price for her to pay\u201d as she suffers a \u201clife sentence\u201d.<\/p>\n
Essex traffic officer PC Caroline Green sustained multiple injuries in the incident, and said her suffering was increased by the fact that it took nearly a year and a half for the perpetrator to be sentenced.<\/p>\n
Caroline said: \u201cI\u2019ve been through 17 months of hell, mentally and physically, and continue to go through it \u2013 it\u2019s like a life sentence for me.\u201d<\/p>\n
On 31 October 2020, Caroline was single-crewed when she stopped a vehicle speeding in Grays. The driver, Abiola Akilla, didn\u2019t have a licence or insurance, and she had her young child in the back of the car.<\/p>\n
Caroline said: \u201cI saw a car coming over the hill going over the speed limit, and it didn\u2019t slow down. I got a reading and pulled her over, and she told me the vehicle wasn\u2019t hers and she didn\u2019t have her licence on her at the moment. I went to the front of the vehicle to take the registration plate and all of a sudden she reversed back onto the road.<\/p>\n
\u201cI went back onto the road in front of her car and told her to come into the layby. As I was calling on the radio for someone to help, she drove over the top of me. Her front wheel went over my ankle, then she drove up my leg. I was in so much pain I thought she\u2019d snapped my leg.<\/p>\n
\u201cI fell back and cracked my head on the concrete and she drove over my ribs and my right shoulder. I had a crushing feeling all over my body and was screaming in pain. She was so close to my head, and in between the first and second wheels going over me I managed to get into a foetal position. Then the back wheel went over my legs, pelvis and stomach.\u201d<\/p>\n
The woman \u2013 who is a nurse – drove off, but luckily a man stopped his car and phoned for an ambulance. An air ambulance arrived and treated Caroline on the roadside before airlifting her to Royal London Hospital, where she stayed for a week.<\/p>\n
Caroline had suffered a flail chest injury with two broken ribs and three fractured ribs, abrasions and swelling to her right hand, a cut to the head and ligament damage to her right ankle. She had problems with concussion for months afterwards and was later diagnosed with PTSD. She wasn\u2019t able to return to police work until December 2021, working from home rather than on the frontline.<\/p>\n
Akilla was arrested and charged with GBH with intent, but it took 17 months for her to be sentenced, on 30 March 2022, by which point the charge had been reduced to serious injury by dangerous driving.<\/p>\n
Waiting so long for the case to come to court affected Caroline\u2019s mental health even more. She said: \u201cI had sleepless nights, I was already having psychological issues with what had happened but then I started getting headaches every single day, thinking about having to go to court.\u201d<\/p>\n
When Akilla received a 30-month sentence and a six-year driving ban, Caroline was relieved but said it should have been a longer sentence. Caroline said: \u201cEvery day since that incident I\u2019ve been on some form of recovery. The implications for her are short-lived, whereas for me they might be forever.\u201d<\/p>\n
She added: \u201cCareer-wise I don\u2019t know where I fit now. I want to stay with the police, I don\u2019t want to be ill-health retired, as I\u2019m only 14 years into my career. But I only ever wanted to work in uniform on the frontline and I can\u2019t do that anymore.\u201d<\/p>\n
Essex Police Federation has supported Caroline through the past year and a half. She said: \u201cI can\u2019t fault the Federation. Laura Heggie \u2013 Essex Police Federation Chair – visited me in hospital the day after it happened and helped me with claims, and she\u2019s been in contact throughout all this time. The Federation has also put me in contact with an anxiety coach, which really helped.\u201d<\/p>\n
Laura said: \u201cHaving watched Caroline\u2019s Body Worn Video and heard the harrowing screams, I cannot comprehend how any human being – let alone a nurse – could just drive off and leave someone injured in the road. I was happy to see the 30-month custodial sentence handed down by the Judge but still feel that Akilla got off lightly.\u201d<\/p>\n
Laura added: \u201cCaroline is living proof of the risks that police officers face every day whilst policing the streets of Essex. This incident shows how in a split second everything can change and the impact it can have on the rest of your life, it\u2019s a true reality check and does bring it home.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat Caroline did that day whilst doing her job, wasn\u2019t reckless and is something Police Officers do 1000\u2019s of times a day but for Caroline it\u2019s been catastrophic, not just the injuries but the impact on her mental health means she is no longer the Caroline that went to work that morning and can no longer do the job she loved.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"