A West Midlands Police chief inspector, whose car struck and killed a university student on a dual carriageway, has been cleared of misconduct and dangerous driving.
Jamie Jones, who was suspended from the force following the accident in March last year, broke down in the dock at Shrewsbury Crown Court as the jury read out a verdict of not guilty on both of the counts he faced.
The panel took just over an hour to clear Jones, 38, of misconduct in a public office for failing to stop at the scene of the accident on the Coventry-bound A45 in the early hours of March 8 last year.
He was also cleared of dangerous driving relating to the allegation that he continued to drive with a smashed windscreen.
During the trial the jury was told Jones’ car struck and killed Warwick University student Raymond Cheung, but that he was not to blame for his death as the student had emerged into the unlit road just a second or two before the collision.
Before the jury retired to consider the verdict, it was urged by the defence to “prevent a further tragedy” and find Mr Jones not guilty.
Jones, of Allesley, Coventry, told the jury during the trial he believed a rock or a brick had hit his windscreen and he had continued to drive because he believed it would not be safe to stop.
The trial heard that on the morning of the collision, Jones was travelling along the road in his BMW at a speed just below the limit of 60mph.
The jury were told the collision with Mr Cheung was “entirely unavoidable”.
Jones was comforted by friends and family after being helped from the court room in tears following the verdict.
