Driver admits crashing into boy

Mar 14 2008 by Chloe Griffiths, Liverpool Daily Post

A VAN driver has admitting causing a crash which left a heroic teenager fighting for his life.

A moment of distraction caused Richard Thorbinson’s van to career on to the pavement and into Michael Doyle as he walked his sister, Abbie, home from school.

The brave 16-year-old pushed his sister out of the path of the Nissan van, taking the impact of the collision himself.

The force of the smash catapulted Michael through a garden hedge.

He suffered a catalogue of injuries including four facial and skull fractures and a blood clot on the brain which left him in intensive care.

Abbie was pushed clear of the van and escaped unscathed.

Yesterday Thorbinson, 33, of Herons Court, Lydiate, admitted dangerous driving on Liverpool Road South, Maghull, on June 18 last year.

Smartly dressed in a black suit and blue tie, he spoke only to confirm his name and enter his guilty plea.

Judge Charles James bailed Thorbinson, but said that was “no indication” of the sentence that may follow.