A cabbie who mowed down a man in Paisley town centre after a row at a taxi rank has been banned from driving. Jim Corbett mounted the kerb in a pink hackney and ran over Christopher Flannigan.

Corbett, 73, denied a charge of dangerous driving but was recently convicted following a trial at Paisley Sheriff Court.  Prosecutors claimed he hit Flannigan after the pair began rowing and he “lost the rag.”

Blair Dalgleish, 24, said he climbed into the back of the hackney after a night out with pals - and watched as Corbett hit Flannigan while he was in the car.

He told the Dily Record: “There was an argument between a taxi driver and a boy. The driver put his foot on the accelerator. The boy jumped out of the way. He went to drive away, and the boy kicked the passenger side door. The taxi mounted the kerb and hit the boy. He hit the ground. The taxi reversed and the boy got up. I could see he was hobbling.”

The incident was captured on CCTV and the footage was played to the court.

Corbett was quizzed by police who were treating the incident as attempted murder, after they stopped him when he returned to pick up more passengers later on the same night.

He told detectives he’d tried to “chase” Flannigan away with the car because he had tried to steal a bike locked against some railings.

Corbett gave evidence in his own defence, claiming he became angry when his motor was kicked during the spat.

The court was also shown dashcam footage which showed Corbett racing towards the lad and mounting the pavement – showing Flannigan disappearing from shot in front of the motor.

Sheriff MacCartney said he had no doubt of Corbett’s guilt and convicted him of the offence.

He could have jailed Corbett for up to 12 months for the offence but, after hearing he was a first offender at the age of 73, he fined him £400 and banned him from driving for 12 months, ordering him to sit and pass the extended driving test before getting behind the wheel again once his ban is over.

Source: https://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/scottish-news/oap-cabbie-mowed-down-man-13156263

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