Lorry driver convicted of Highland nursery teacher's death

Chloe Morrison was walking near her home when she was killed

A lorry driver has been found guilty of causing a nursery teacher's death after failing to notice part of his vehicle was not secured properly.

Chloe Morrison, 26, was struck by a fully extended part of a stabiliser on John O'Donnell's lorry as she walked along a pavement with her mother.

O'Donnell, 52, of Inverurie, denied driving dangerously and killing Ms Morrison on the A82 near Drumnadrochit.

He has been convicted of causing her death by careless driving.

Members of both Ms Morrison and O'Donnell's families burst into tears when the jury's verdict was returned at the High Court in Inverness.

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The trial heard O'Donnell had driven his lorry with a crane attached from Oldmeldrum in Aberdeenshire to Skye on 24 October 2019.

He stayed overnight and said he had dropped stabilising legs the following day because of gales - although he was not trained to do so - before setting off on his return journey.

Warning sign

He insisted he did not extend or touch the controls of the stabilisers' outrigger beams.

But CCTV showed the nearside outrigger's yellow warning sign, indicating it was unlocked, when he filled up with diesel at a filling station on Skye.

A passenger in a car travelling in the opposite direction also saw the outrigger swing out seconds before reaching the collision scene.

The court heard Ms Morrison, who was from Drumnadrochit, died from multiple fractures as the outrigger hit her back and propelled her 35m (115ft) in front of the lorry.

Judge Lord Stuart deferred sentence until 19 October at the High Court in Glasgow and called for a background report.

Defence counsel Tony Graham asked that his client have his bail continued.

O'Donnell has been disqualified from driving.