After more than a year of blaming a tragic Perthshire motorcyclist for his own death, the pensioner responsible has finally admitted his guilt.
William Scott was trying to perform a dangerous three-point turn on a busy tourist route when father of three David Roberts’ bike smashed into the side of his car.
Despite completely blocking the A85 with his powerful Jaguar, he claimed Mr Roberts, who died instantly, was at fault.
It was a position the 72-year-old maintained until appearing in Perth Sheriff Court on Thursday, with distraught members of Mr Roberts’ family looking on.
Depute fiscal Carol Whyte said Scott had been travelling to the Glenturret Distillery in Crieff with a companion but realised he had driven too far.
He stopped his 3.2-litre Jaguar on a track near East Lodge at Dunira to consult his satellite navigation device, which recommended that he turn round and head back the way he came.
As he carried out the manoeuvre, Mr Roberts was approaching the unclassified junction on his Ducati motorbike.
He had been returning to the Stanley home he shared with his wife and three children after attending a meeting in Tyndrum.
Ms Whyte told the court: “Witnesses saw Mr Roberts sit up on the motorcycle and he appeared to adjust his road position.
“They saw the accused continue to emerge from the junction and into the path of the motorcycle.
“Mr Roberts was seen to attempt to take evasive action and attempt to avoid a collision with the accused.
“By this time, the accused was positioned at a right angle, blocking both lanes and in line with telephone poles.
“He left Mr Roberts with nowhere to go and his motorcycle collided with the driver’s door of the accused’s vehicle.”
At this point, Scott got out of his vehicle and, after surveying the scene, was heard to say that it “didn’t look good” and denied seeing the bike.
When quizzed by police, Scott refused to comment on the details of the accident, only confirming that he had been heading to the distillery for lunch after spending the morning in Callander.
Ms Whyte added: “He replied with no comment when he was asked to describe the manoeuvre he carried out.
“It was put to the accused that his vehicle blocked the road and he replied ‘no comment’.
“He then said to officers: ‘To shut both carriageways, you would need to be a bus’.
“The crash investigators report stated the road width was 6m and the Jaguar was 4.86m. He was asked if he felt responsible for the accident and replied ‘no’.
“He was also asked if he felt it was the actions of the motorcyclist that caused the collision and said ‘yes’.
“He replied ‘no comment’ when asked to elaborate.”
When cautioned and charged, he responded: “My vehicle was stationary and that’s all I have to say”.
Scott, of Main Street, Overtown, near Wishaw, admitted causing Mr Roberts’ death by driving carelessly on August 22 last year. He will return for sentencing on January 8 and was disqualified from driving in the interim.