Leicestershire police warn of E-scooter dangers after six-year-old has skull fractured in collision
Jamie Smith is still recovering from the incident last August
Leicestershire police are warning local people of the dangers of e-scooters after a young boy suffered serious injuries in an incident last August.
Six-year-old Jamie Smith was hit with an e-scooter which was travelling at around 24 miles-per-hour and had to be rushed to Queen's Medical Centre in Nottingham after suffering a fractured skull.
Jamie's sister Brooklyn said: “Our hearts broke when we found out Jamie had been knocked over, physically and mentally we were heartbroken, and in a state of complete panic and anger.
“The hardest part was hearing of the injuries he sustained including a fractured skull. It took him six weeks after the incident to even look in a mirror because his own reflection genuinely frightened him and he didn’t recognise his own face, which was heart-breaking to see. My younger sister, who is eight years old, was sat in my dad’s car and forced to see what happened and she couldn’t do anything.
Jamie still can’t comprehend why someone would do this to him. Accident or not this has potentially ruined my baby brother’s life and the boy who did this has shown no remorse whatsoever.
“Since the incident Jamie has had quite bad memory loss, nightmares and an irrational fear of the outside world. He over thinks everything in the worst possible scenario and has a constant fear regardless of where he is. Jamie has also been out of school which has impacted his learning and concentration massively. He isn’t able to be a child anymore. This one incident has put a huge wrecking ball in his life and it’s not just affected his face and body it’s affected his trust, his friendships and almost every aspect of his life and it is heart-breaking to see.
The rider failed to stop at the scene and rode off. He was later identified following an appeal by Jamie's friends and family.
The 17-year-old, who can't be who can’t be named for legal reasons, was charged with causing a serious injury by dangerous driving, failing to stop after a road traffic collision, failing to report a road traffic collision, using a motor vehicle without insurance, using a motor vehicle without a MOT certificate and driving a vehicle otherwise in accordance with a licence.
On Monday the defendant pleaded guilty to the charges and will be sentenced on Monday 12th April.
PC Kieran Dempsey from Leicestershire Roads Policing Unit was the investigating officer, he said: “As this case has demonstrated, electric scooters are dangerous vehicles in the wrong hands and are currently illegal to use both on the road and in public areas in Leicestershire”
“Jamie was left with significant injuries which were initially believed to be life threatening. Thankfully he has made a physical recovery but it was an extremely difficult time for him and his family.
“In Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland it is illegal to use an electric scooter on a public highway. The government is currently running trials of electric scooters (e-scooters), however this trial is not taking place in the Leicestershire force area.
“If you use an e-scooter illegally you could face a fine, get penalty points on your licence, and the e-scooter could be impounded. If your actions results in someone being injured, as in this case, you could face prosecution.