‘You ruined our family with no consequences’: Family of grandmother killed by royal outrider to sue police
Helen Holland, 81, was struck by speeding Met Police outrider PC Christopher Harrison as he escorted the Duchess of Edinburgh through London
The grieving family of a grandmother killed by a motorcyclist escorting the Duchess of Edinburgh through London have said they are suing the Metropolitan Police after he was acquitted.
Helen Holland, 81, died two weeks after she was sent flying through the air while after being struck by a police outrider at a pedestrian crossing in West Cromwell Road, west London, on 10 May 2023.
PC Christopher Harrison, 68, was travelling at between 44mph and 58mph as he approached the crossing, despite a 30mph limit.
A jury found him not guilty of causing her death by careless driving on Thursday after almost two and half hours of deliberating.
After the verdict was returned, one of Ms Holland’s ten grandchildren shouted from the public gallery of the Old Bailey: “You ruined our family with no consequences.”
Now the family has revealed they plan to sue the force – not because they want any money – but to acknowledge that the grandmother “did nothing wrong”. The green man was illuminated, signalling it was safe to cross the road, when she was struck as she made her way home from visiting her sister.
Ms Holland’s son Martin, 59, described her as the “heart” and “glue” of their family.
He told the Sunday Times: “We are suing them just to make sure it’s recognised. We’re not in the slightest bit interested in compensation — it’s about proving that mum did nothing wrong. She would never take a risk. Certainly crossing a road was one of the big risks that was important to her. She knew how to cross a road.”
On the day of the incident, PC Harrison was among the team of convoy motorbike outriders that was escorting Sophie, the Duchess of Edinburgh, as she left the Foreign and Commonwealth Development Office in King Charles Street just after 3pm.
PC Harrison, who had 21 years of experience in the specialist escort group, was the main outrider in front of the hearse at Queen Elizabeth’s funeral in September 2022.
He told the court he “couldn’t put it into numbers” how many times he had undertaken the journey and that he was “very familiar” with the route.
Ms Holland was 2.9 metres onto the crossing when PC Harrison’s motorbike hit her. She suffered a skull fracture, bruising to her arms, legs and body, plus fractures to her lower legs.
A post-mortem examination gave the cause of death as complications from a severe head injury.
PC Harrison told jurors the collision was a “tragic accident” which occurred in circumstances that he had “no control over”.
Under cross-examination, he accepted he forgot to switch on his body-worn camera and did not use his whistle as he approached the pedestrian crossing but insisted he had not been complacent that day.
“She was just there in front of me,” he told jurors. “She just appeared, between the kerb line and the point of collision. At no point did I see her on the island, I’m sorry.”
Ms Holland’s sister, Dorothy Phillips, 91, who attended every day of the Old Bailey trial, has been left too scared to cross the road in the wake of tragedy.
“Now nobody can go across any green crossing with any security at all,” she said. “I won’t. I’m too frightened to even cross the road.”
PC Harrison is still likely to face disciplinary proceedings after a 12-month the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) investigation found there was sufficient evidence to indicate he may have breached the police standards.
In a statement released after the trial, Commander Adam Slonecki said the Met are “deeply sorry”, adding: “While nothing we can say or do can make up for this loss, we have worked to safeguard against future tragedies regardless of today’s outcome.
“Escort riders now have bullhorns fitted to their motorcycles to ensure public safety. They use these in addition to their whistles to warn people they are approaching. We will now consider any misconduct matters for PC Harrison as soon as possible.”