Man jailed for seven years after driving 4x4 into Bradford couple

Daniel McAllister was said to have used his “large, powerful and heavy” Mitsubishi Shogun as “a highly dangerous weapon” when he used it to attack the man and his partner on Dene Road, off Cooper Lane, on July 8, 2021.

Bradford Crown Court heard that the car was fitted with cosmetic “bull bars” and that the incident was further aggravated by the presence of the victim’s young sons who both witnessed the attack and were traumatised by it.

McAllister, 34, of Sharp Avenue, Wibsey, was convicted at trial in November of causing grievous bodily harm with intent following the deliberate collision, which left both people injured.

McAllister has been jailed (Image: West Yorkshire Police)

In sentencing him, His Honour Judge Jonathan Rose said McAllister had blamed his victims for what had happened to him, and that remorse he had expressed for the attack was not genuine.

Prosecutor Adam Birkby told the court that the attack followed an argument between McAllister and a former partner.

The woman’s brother rang McAllister and asked if he had assaulted his sister, which resulted in McAllister “shouting and screaming” down the phone before threatening to come to the man’s house “and bring the boys with him”. 

The man armed himself with a short rounders bat and waited in the driveway of his home, fearing that McAllister would fulfil his threat, the court heard.

He did turn up and initially drove past the house where the man had been joined outside by his partner.

But he then turned his car around and drove at speed at the couple.

The man attempted to jump out of the way but the Shogun struck them both, pinning the woman against a Volkswagen Touran that was parked in the driveway.

She was left with significant injuries to her pelvis and legs. The court heard that she could not walk properly for eight months afterwards.

The man also suffered an injury to his pelvis as well as to his hand.

Bradford Crown Court was where the sentencing took place

In victim personal statements read to the court the male victim said the incident had been “life-changing” and had left him feeling scared, paranoid, upset and “even suicidal” at times. He had suffered “horrendous pain” as well as post-traumatic stress disorder and regular flashbacks.

His two sons witnessed the incident with one, aged five at the time, having to have therapy as a result.

The older boy, who is disabled, has had to watch his father physically suffer with pain as he continued as a full-time carer for him.

The female victim said she had received treatment from specialist doctors, consultants, and physiotherapists and the scarring to her legs meant she covered herself up.

She said: “Mentally I think I will never recover. I relive the trauma every day. My house was my safe place and now it feels as if I will never be safe again.”

Mitigating, Andrew Walker said McAllister had a serious medical condition that led to ADHD, poor decision-making, impulsivity, and affected self-control. He said the incident was “not simply an ordinary individual losing his head on the day”.

He said McAllister had expressed some remorse and, in terms of the female victim, had not deliberately driven at her as he did not realise she was there.

In sentencing McAllister Judge Rose said: “You deliberately and intentionally used a motor car as a weapon to deliberately drive into two people intending to cause them really serious harm.

“And you did indeed cause serious injury [to them].

“Whilst the jury could not be sure that you intended to kill either of your victims, the facts of this case are grave enough to require the imposition of a lengthy custodial sentence.”

He said McAllister’s threat to go to the victim’s home was “a clear indication … to do violence [to him]” and he “made the deliberate decision to drive your vehicle directly at them”.

He jailed McAllister for seven years, banned him from driving for six years – to be extended after custody – and imposed an indefinite restraining order preventing him from contacting the two victims.