EWJ August 62 2025 web - Journal - Page 37
Together, these challenges demonstrated the need for
expert analysis, based on sound scientific principles,
to fully understand the case.
• Establish the precise speeds of all vehicles involved.
Understanding whether the vehicles were exceeding
the speed limit, and by how much, was crucial to assessing how rapidly the situation unfolded and
whether the driver had a realistic chance to avoid the
collision. Accurate speed analysis could also provide
insight into the severity of the impact and the likely
responses of those involved.
The Findings:
A detailed collision investigation was conducted, using
advanced forensic techniques to reconstruct the incident. The work included:
• Corrected CCTV analysis provided accurate
timing and movement data.
By recalibrating the slowed footage, the team
established an objective and reliable timeline of the
vehicles' positions and movements.
• Accurately reconstruct the sequence of events.
With several vehicles involved, it was necessary to
build a clear timeline of movements. This would identify when the motorcyclists began slowing down, when
the car started braking, and the precise moment when
the collision occurred.
• A detailed 3D digital reconstruction brought
clarity to the scene.
This digital reconstruction was created using over 600
photographs taken from both aerial drone imagery
and ground-level perspectives. The model provided a
highly accurate visual representation of the road layout, junction, and surrounding environment and key
features.
• Interpret and analyse the available CCTV footage.
A further complication emerged when the police
footage provided had been unintentionally slowed by
a factor of two, causing it to play back at half speed.
Without careful forensic analysis, this could create a
misleading impression of how quickly or slowly events
unfolded, potentially influencing perceptions of
intent.
This precise mapping allowed both legal teams and
the jury to clearly visualise the incident, including vehicle positions and movements, all of which were
crucial to understanding how the collision occurred.
• Forensically examine the CCTV footage to extract
accurate timing and movement data.
Instead of visual interpretation alone, the investigation would require the precise measurement of distances, reference points, and timings within the
footage to build a scientifically supported account of
events. This approach could remove uncertainty and
ensured conclusions were based on verifiable facts.
• Vehicle speeds were calculated using fixed reference points.
The investigation involved calculating vehicle speeds
by tracking movement across fixed reference points
visible in the CCTV footage. Landmarks such as bus
stop markings, and road features served as reliable
measurement markers.
• Apply recognised scientific methods to assess the
driver's perception and response times.
Establishing how quickly a typical driver could
perceive a hazard, assess the situation, and physically
respond could be key to understand whether the
driver had any realistic opportunity to prevent the
collision.
By recording the exact time each vehicle passed these
points, the expert was able to accurately assess the
speed of each vehicle at critical moments. This analysis confirmed how fast each vehicle was travelling and
demonstrated how quickly the situation developed in
the moments before the collision, including whether
the driver had time to react.
Below image: 3D digital model, created with over 600
photographs from the scene.
EXPERT WITNESS JOURNAL
35
AUGUST/SEPT 2025
