A Dundee lorry driver accused of knocking down and killing a woman at a pedestrian crossing told police he was not to blame because she “put herself in that situation”.
Gerald Clark is on trial accused of causing Mary Allan’s death by driving carelessly on Aberdeen’s King Street, near the St Machar Road roundabout.
The 65-year-old is alleged to have blocked a pedestrian crossing, failing to notice the traffic lights had turned red and not checking his mirrors before moving off.
Mrs Allan, 83, was crossing in front of the lorry at the time.
Clark, of Taits Lane in Dundee, denies the charge and is on trial at Aberdeen Sheriff Court.
Yesterday, the court was shown video clips of a police interview Clark gave following the September 10 incident last year.
Officers suggested to him that, had he halted his vehicle before the crossing rather than on it, he would have seen the lights changing.
In turn, they said, this would have allowed Mrs Allan to cross the road unimpeded.
But Clark said he was only blocking the area because a car in front had stopped to give way at the roundabout.
And he claimed a blind spot in the mirrors meant Mrs Allan was not visible to him.
“I believe I cleared the pedestrian crossing and was continuing on my way,” he said on the video.
“The car stopped and if it hadn’t, I would have been even further through.
“I’m sorry to say Mary put herself in that situation by walking in front of my vehicle and, as much as I try to pay attention, I can’t see everything at all times.
“I just didn’t see that woman where she was.”
The mirror claim was disputed by crash investigator Stephen Morrison, who had carried out a reconstruction of the collision.
By using a female colleague the same height as Mrs Allan, he tested the visibility of the alleged blind spot and of pedestrians on the pavement.
“It’s visible, but you can’t see it without using those mirrors,” he told the court.
The trial continues.
