A dad who died of cardiac arrest after a crash would not have survived the head injuries he suffered beforehand, an inquest heard.
Andrew Kelly, 37, of Harrogate Drive was a back seat passenger in a red Vauxhall Corsa, being driven by dad George, when it collided with a blue BMW right outside a pub in Anfield on May 27, 2020. The 37-year-old suffered fatal injuries and died a short time after arriving at hospital.
An inquest into Mr Kelly's death, held today at the Gerard Majella courthouse, heard that the 37-year-old had been "unrestrained" in the back seat and when emergency services arrived, he was found unconscious but breathing. A short time later, Mr Kelly suffered a cardiac arrest and later died at Aintree Hospital.
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Forensic pathologist Jonathan Metcalfe said Mr Kelly's head injuries would "not have been survivable" as bleeding through the ears and nose shows signs of a skull fracture. He added the injuries suggested a "significant impact" and given the damage of the vehicle, it is likely Mr Kelly may still have died whether or not a seatbelt was worn.
However, he added he cannot say with certainty as Mr Kelly's injuries are "likely to have been less severe" had he worn a seatbelt.
The hearing heard on Friday that on May 27, 2020, Mr Kelly was a rear passenger, driven by his father, along Breck Road, travelling at around 20mph. At the same time, a blue BMW, driven by Stephen Walls, was travelling along Belmont Drive at an estimated speed of 45mph - both roads with a speed limit of 30mph.
The cars collided in the middle of the junction before the Vauxhall struck the wall on a nearby public house. The court heard how the Corsa struck a traffic pole before becoming trapped, meaning both Mr Kelly and his father had to be freed by the fire service. Area Coroner Anita Bhardwaj said that morning the sun was said to have been "dazzling".
Previous evidence heard how the sun was "bouncing off the road". The coroner went on to say that survivability would have depended on where Mr Kelly had sat and where he hit his head, but contributing factors were the Vauxhall going through a red light, the "excessive speed" from the BMW driver and Mr Kelly not wearing a seatbelt.
She added it was "unclear" why the red Corsa went through the red light as there is no evidence of distraction or reduced visibility. However there was clearly some "reduced visibility" as Mr Kelly's father was seen pulling down the sun visor previously.
She added: "The court finds it more likely than not that despite the sun glare, there was still an opportunity for the driver to see the red traffic light and bring the vehicle to a halt but we don't know why this wasn't done." The court heard that due to the junction, neither driver would have seen one another and a collision would more likely than not still have taken place if the BWM was travelling at 30mph.
However Ms Bhardwaj said Mr Kelly would have had a "greater chance of survival" if the speed limit was adhered to due to a reduction in severity but there is "no way of analysing the collision would've become survivable". Mr George Kelly died before interview, unrelated to the crash, but Ms Bhardwaj said that his phone had not been in use and toxicology results came back clear.
Mr Walls' toxicology results suggested he was "just on the legal limit", however there was "no signs of impairment". The coroner gave a cause of death as 1a, massive blunt force head injury caused by a road traffic collision.
The ECHO previously reported that the dad, who was due to be married later that year, was on his way to work at the time of the crash.
Friends paid tribute to Mr Kelly who described him as "kind and gentle." Floral tributes were later left at the scene, and one said: "Andy you legend, love you always."
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