Jury clears driver of all responsibilty for tram crash that killed seven people

The driver of a tram that crashed in Croydon in November 2016, killing seven people, has been cleared of failing to take reasonable care at work.

Alfred Dorris, 49, was charged under the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 over the derailment, which left another 19 people seriously injured.

There were 69 passengers on the tram when it toppled over on a sharp bend.

A jury at the Old Bailey cleared him in less than two hours. Mr Dorris left the dock in tears.

Those who died were Dane Chinnery, Donald Collett, Robert Huxley, Philip Logan, Dorota Rynkiewicz, Philip Seary and Mark Smith.

The jury heard Mr Dorris was driving the tram at over 70 km/h, more than three times the limit as he approached the curve near Sandilands.

The prosecution claimed Mr Dorris, from Beckenham, south-east London, may have had a “micro-sleep” while at the controls of the tram. He denied this, saying “It just went horribly wrong for me.”

-->