A JURY has failed to reach a verdict in the trial of a Bolton man who is charged with death by careless driving.

Harrison Sievey, the 24-year-old son of Frank Sidebottom creator Chris Sievey, had fallen from his bike in Mauldeth Road West, Fallowfield, and was lying on the ground when a vehicle hit him, the jury heard.

Vithal Visavadiya, aged 63 of Clunton Avenue, Daubhill, was on trial at Manchester Crown Court, charged with death by careless driving following the incident on February 12, 2017.

The defendant pleaded not guilty to the charge and said he was driving with appropriate care under the circumstances.

But after two days of considering the evidence the jury was unable to reach a verdict and was discharged. The prosecution now have decide whether to seek a retrial.

Earlier, summarising the evidence, Judge Patrick Field said: “Harrison Sievey died of injuries he suffered in the collision with the blue Vauxhall Corsa.

“At the time, Mr Sievey was lying in the road, having fallen from his bicycle. As he lay there, the defendant drove into collision with him.

“We have no way of knowing how much time lapsed between Mr Sievey falling off his bicycle and the collision but you may have got the impression that things happened very quickly indeed. It may be that we are only talking about a matter of seconds.”

Mr Sievey had been cycling with friend Izaak Coller on their way from The Victoria pub in Withington to Mr Coller’s home just after 10pm when Mr Sievey fell from his bike near the junction between Mauldeth Road West and Wellington Road. His friend went to his aid.

Alexander Squires and his girlfriend Emily Anderson Porter saw the cyclists while walking through the area.

The court heard that Christine and James Slevin, who were driving home along Mauldeth Road West at the time, stopped their red Ford Fiesta in the road to see if the cyclist was all right.

Judge Field said: “Mr Slevin says he flashed his lights to warn the oncoming vehicle of the hazard ahead.

"Ms Porter said she shouted and waved their arms.

“The prosecution says the defendant failed to pay attention to any of these warnings, failed to see that there were two men in the roadway ahead of him, and as a result, he ploughed on and collided with Harrison Sievey, causing fatal injuries. The prosecution says that you can be sure that the defendant, in those circumstances, drove without due care and attention."

He continued: "The defendant accepts that he drove on to collision.

“He says, however, that he drove with appropriate care under the circumstances.

“The headlights of Mr Slevin’s care obscured his view of the two men. He slowed down but he simply did not see them, and nor did his wife who was in the car with him.

“He says he exercised due care under the difficult circumstances.

“He denies that he was careless. He denies he was guilty of the offence of which he is charged.”

The defendant told the court he was driving travelling just over 20mph initially and then slower than that.

The court heard evidence from PC Christopher Whittaker, an expert in accident reconstruction, who explained that a car travelling at 20mph would cover a distance of six metres in less then a second.

Mr Whittaker concluded that, using full emergency braking, the vehicle stopping 12.86 metres after a collision would have been travelling at most 25mph at the time of the collision.

Judge Field said: "Mr Squires said he became aware of the defendant's car approaching from behind him.

"He said it was travelling at a speed that was normal for that area, nothing excessive, but noticing that it did not slow down on its approach, he said that he shouted loudish but not as loudly as he could.

"His girlfriend said she joined in but she said visibility was not good and visibility of her might have been affected by parked cars. Her description was that the car was travelling at a moderate speed but one that was too fast relative to the scene that she could see."

Judge Field also summarised evidence from Mr Slevin, who previously told the court he had driven beyond the cyclists and flashed his headlights. He said he had driven to the middle of the road when he saw the driver was not going to stop.

Judge Field said: "Mr Slevin insisted he had flashed his lights and they were not on main beam. However Mr Squires and Ms Procter, although both aware of the red car, said the lights didn't flash."

The court heard that Visavadiya has no previous convictions and has a clean driving record.

Evidence was given as to his good character. The married father-of-three was previously a delivery driver and is now employed in a warehouse in Trafford Park.

Existing colleagues said he has driven them to and from work and described him as a family man.

Judge Field said: "The defendant said he was extremely upset after the accident and was still upset at the time he was interviewed by police, and for three or four days after.

"He said for the past 18 months he has been thinking about this.

"He remained adamant he had driven carefully and at a slow speed and had not seen the hazard because his ability to see it was restricted by the bright lights of the car."