A judge yesterday quashed the conviction of a truck driver who ran over a child, ruling the sentencing magistrate muddled the evidence of a seven-year-old girl who was the main witness. The magistrate fined Ma Kim-kwan after hearing he had run over a child while she was riding her bicycle. The victim was not seriously injured, although the court heard her uncle had found her crying, with wheel marks on her hand and leg. The main evidence against Mr Ma came from the injured child's friend, who was riding alongside her. The girl had told the court she was talking to her friend when the lorry struck. She gave evidence that the wheels of the truck had dragged her friend's bike. But yesterday, counsel for Mr Ma, Christopher Grounds, told the Court of First Instance the magistrate had incorrectly dealt with the child's evidence, which was inconsistent with an earlier version given to police. Madam Justice Clare-Marie Beeson said the magistrate had erred in taking the police officer's evidence into account when assessing the truth of the child's statement. 'In doing so [the magistrate] was relying on a hearsay account rather than the evidence the child gave in court,' she said. 'Having found what [the girl] had said to [the police officer] on the day of the accident was true, [the magistrate] was able to find that [the girl] had seen the lorry 'run over' the victim, although in court she could only say she saw the bicycle being dragged.' Madam Justice Beeson quashed the conviction and ordered the fine refunded.
