A driver who struck an 11-year-old girl in Radcliffe, then drove off and left her lying in the road with catastrophic injuries, has been jailed.
Ruby Cropper died after being hit by the car driven by Andrew Cairns on 10 August 2020.
Cairns, of Rupert Street, Radcliffe, was found guilty of causing death by dangerous driving at a trial at The Hilton Nightingale Crown Court in January, and has today been sentenced to five years in jail.
He will also be disqualified from driving for seven years.
Ruby’s parents have spoken of their heartbreak, saying their ‘world ended’ when they saw their daughter ‘unconscious and dying’.
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They also said that Ruby’s organs were donated, adding: “Our brave, selfless girl saved three people with her kidneys and liver.”
New Road in Radcliffe, where Ruby Cropper was struck. Credit: Google Maps
Ruby had been walking along the pavement with a friend, and was struck by Cairns’ Suzuki Alto while crossing New Road in .
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Eye witnesses say he was travelling at ‘around 50 to 60mph’ in a 30mph zone.
They also reported him overtaking cars and cutting across traffic before hitting Ruby.
The young girl was left with severe head injuries, and died in hospital two days after the collision.
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A post-mortem examination concluded that her death was ‘primarily due to brain injury and attributed this to the collision’.
Cairns handed himself into the police, denying that he was driving dangerously but admitting to travelling at excess speed.
PC Laura Drew, a forensic collision reconstruction officer employed by Greater Manchester Police, filed a report that stated: “Witnesses estimate Mr Cairns speed was between 50mph and 60mph.
Andrew Cairns, who left Ruby Cropper lying in the road.
“It is not known as to what exact path or speed Miss Cropper ran at, however research shows her time in the road to be between 0.8 and 1.3 seconds. Mr Cairns could not have avoided this collision at the speed he was travelling.
“However, had Mr Cairns been travelling at the speed limit, Miss Cropper would have had time to pass across the front of his vehicle without him having to take any evasive action.”
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Lead investigator, PC Phil Drummond, from GMP’s Serious Collision Investigation Unit, said: “For reasons only known to himself, Cairns chose to drive in a way that would inevitably end in disaster.
“His reckless actions had the most severe of consequences; the life of a young, innocent girl ended and a family torn apart.
“As quickly as he took Ruby’s life, he fled the scene without any thought for her, leaving decent members of the public to rush to her aid.
“While Cairns admitted to causing Ruby’s death at an earlier hearing, he failed to recognise and take responsibility for his sustained, despicable course of driving.
Cairns stood trial at the Hilton Nightingale Crown Court in Manchester. Credit: Google Maps
“Furthermore, only six months later and while on bail, he continued to drive without regard for public safety and was caught speeding, showing a complete and utter lack of remorse.
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“Thankfully, 17 months after the collision, a jury saw through Cairns’ inconsistent account and rightly convicted him of causing Ruby’s death by driving dangerously.
“I wish to thank Ruby’s family for their patience and compassion throughout the entire investigation. I hope this serves to bring them some level of closure.
“Furthermore, I would like to take the opportunity to commend the efforts of the members of public who not only aided Ruby until paramedics arrived but furthermore, appeared in court to give evidence, ultimately reliving their horrific memories.
“I hope this serves to reassure our communities and a reminder those who seek to put them in danger – the Serious Collision Investigation Unit is dedicated to our work and will continue to prosecute them.”
Statements from Ruby Cropper’s parents
Shelley Booth (Ruby’s mum): “From the very moment I received the call from my husband telling me that our beautiful daughter Ruby had been run over, life has never been the same.
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“The shock of seeing her unconscious and dying in front of me is the worst thing I have ever had to deal with in my life.
“I couldn’t understand how my gorgeous, happy girl, who would help anyone, had been run over and left in the road, and that the driver didn’t have the heart to stop and help her, not even ring an ambulance.
“Our world ended at that point. We had lost our ray of sunshine. Our girl was always positive, a kind, caring and funny girl who had her whole life ahead of her.
“We will never get to see her prom, her first day at college and at university. We won’t see her get married or become a mum. We will never see what life she would have had.
“No sentence will ever be enough, as we have to spend the rest of our lives without our beautiful, kind, caring and funny girl. She was the brightest light in the darkest room. We miss her so much.
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“Ruby would have died on the 10 August but, because she was an organ donor, we had until the early hours of 12 August to say goodbye.
“We lay with her and played her favourite music, took her hand and foot prints, told her how much we loved her and were there until her last breath.
“Our brave, selfless girl saved three people with her kidneys and her liver. They have frozen her heart valves for possible matches in the future.”
Ian Cropper (Ruby’s dad): “After it all happened, I was angry for a long time. I didn’t care about anything, life just became pointless and my reason for being wasn’t apparent anymore.
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“Every day merged into one and they felt endless – no work, no sleep, no one to talk to that could understand the way I was feeling – I was lost in my own bubble of anger that I couldn’t allow anyone in to, it was too hard.
“Ruby was my whole world, she was my best friend and absolute love of my life – Ruby made me the person I am. She made me a Daddy, she made me see the world differently, she made me strong when I didn’t feel it, she made me happy when I was sad – she was my EVERYTHING and it’s hard to put into words the loss I feel.
“I am not sure there are enough words in this world to try and describe a world without Ruby in it.”
Featured image: GMP
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Independent review into police actions during Manchester synagogue terror attack finds ‘no misconduct’
Emily Sergeant
An independent review into the terror attack at a synagogue in Crumpsall last week has concluded there was ‘no misconduct’ by the police.
The investigation was carried out by the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) following the shocking knife and car attack, which took place last Thursday 2 October on Yom Kippur, the holiest day in the Jewish calendar, at the Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation Synagogue.
Two men sadly lost their lives during the attack – Adrian Daulby, 53, who is believed to have been shot dead by Greater Manchester Police (GMP) while trying to stop the attacker from entering the synagogue, and Melvin Cravitz, 66, a worshipper who also helped stop the attacker.
The attacker has been named as 35-year-old Jihad al Shamie – a 35-year-old British citizen of Syrian descent who lived in Prestwich – who at the time was on bail for an alleged rape, before being shot dead by police.
Statement from Chief Constable Sir Stephen Watson following an update from the Independent Office for Police Conduct. This comes after last week's attack at Heaton Park Synagogue. pic.twitter.com/5tQQKeNaTh
The IOPC says its investigation is ‘mandatory’ in situations where police use of force may have resulted in the death of a member of the public.
Their investigation looked at the actions and decision-making of the officers involved in the incident.
“Over the coming days, we will continue to review the substantial amount of evidence gathered up to now, and will begin the process of obtaining more detailed statements from police witnesses,” the IOPC said in a statment.
GMP’s Chief Constable, Sir Stephen Watson, says he ‘welcomes’ the IOPC’s finding that no misconduct is apparent in the actions required of officers in ‘bringing this dreadful attack to an end’.
An independent review into police actions during the Manchester synagogue terror attack has found ‘no misconduct’ / Credit: GMP
He said in a statement addressing the matter: “Our thoughts will always be with the families and loved ones of those directly affected by this tragedy together with the wider community across Greater Manchester and beyond. Our significant presence and determination to protect everyone from all faith communities across our city region will continue unabated.”
With the IOPC’s investigation into the incident still ongoing, CC Watson assured ‘GMP is committed to openness, transparency, and candour’.
“In respect of all our previous dealings with [al Shamie], and we have therefore asked the IOPC to include this aspect in their ongoing review,” CC Watson continued.
“This includes previous reports of harassment, and an arrest for reports of rape over the past year, for which he was on bail at the time of the attack.”
Featured Image – GMP
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Breakaway competition R360 issues statement after rubgy unions warn players of sanctions
Danny Jones
Prospective breakaway competition R360 have issued a response to the joint statement from multiple countries’ rugby unions, which has warned players of sanctions should they choose to join the new league.
While the vast majority seemingly remain opposed to the new concept, backing from certain key figures has resulted in the likes of the UK and Irish rugby unions, along with other key nations, sharing their unified stance against the potential rival.
Put in the simplest terms, the R360 model is rugby’s equivalent of what the proposed European ‘Super League’ was for football just a few years ago, with similar questions being raised around how it could jeopardise existing contests, player wellbeing and more.
Now, though, the new format – which has been largely backed and developed by former World Cup winner with England, Mike Tindall – delivered its own reply on Wednesday, 8 October.
Shared publicly to the press, the alternative tournament wrote: “It’s not always easy to embrace new opportunities, but as we’ve seen throughout history, it’s essential for any sport to grow. So many players love what R360 can do for them and the game, and we can’t wait to kick off next year.
“Player welfare is one of the key reasons for creating our global series, which will greatly reduce player load and capture the attention of a new generation of fans globally. We want to work collaboratively as part of the global rugby calendar.
“The series is designed with bespoke schedules for men’s and women’s teams and R360 will release all players for international matches, as written into their contracts. Our philosophy is clear – if players want to play for their country, they should have that opportunity. Why would the unions stand in their way?
“We look forward to submitting to the World Rugby Council for sanctioning next summer as planned.”
At present, R360 is due to hold its inagural season this time next year, with eight new male teams and four women’s sides expected to get underway from October 2026 onwards.
In addition to more lucrative contracts like those promised in the IPL (Indian Premier League) cricket, LIV Golf and the aforementioned albeit failed Super League, R360 is also set to offer a reduced playing schedule but one that would still tempt athletes away from their current teams to new franchises.
The national rugby unions of New Zealand, Australia, South Africa, Ireland, England, Scotland, France and Italy have released the following statement on the proposed R360 competition ⬇️#IrishRugby
Although they have assured player care is an utmost priority, their health and fitness is one of my concerns put forward by the total eight rubgy unions who have urged current pros to stay away from the breakaway competition.
In case you haven’t seen the statement release by England, Ireland and Scotland, as well as France, Italy, New Zealand, Australia and South Africa, it begins by “urging extreme caution for players and support staff considering joining the proposed R360 competition.”
Assuring that they welcome “investment and innovation in rugby”, they feel this particular idea won’t improve the sport but could instead “fragment or weaken it.”
Having assessed the proposals supposed value/addition to the “rugby’s global ecosystem”, it seems the fear is that the outcome will be a “net negative to the game”, with little to no detail as to how it can run alongside existing fixtures, assure proper management of player welfare and more.
As for Wales, despite opting not to put their name to the open letter itself, they have stated publicly: “The Welsh Rugby Union supports this statement, and we’re considering changes we may need to make to qualification rules in Wales as part of ongoing analysis following our recent consultation process.”
The statement continues: “The R360 model, as outlined publicly, rather appears designed to generate profits and return them to a very small elite, potentially hollowing out the investment that national unions and existing leagues make in community rugby, player development, and participation pathways.”
It seems there is deep concern for how it could affect grassroots and the international rugby too, not just league and union, and have failed to full explain or help key organisations “better understand their business and operating model.”
Most notably, they sign off by adding: “Each of the national unions will therefore be advising men’s and women’s players that participation in R360 would make them ineligible for international selection.”
What do you make of the whole debate – do you like the current schedule/format as it is, or do you think there’s room for a new chapter in the rugby world?
Daisy Jackson -
17th February 2022 
