This is the face of the lorry driver who was jailed for colliding with and killing a much-loved Derbyshire cyclist. Richard Smith was sent to prison for seven months on Friday, August 12, after he admitted being responsible for causing the death of "popular and much-loved" David Bates near Ashbourne..

But Derbyshire police have only now released the custody photograph they held of the 41-year-old killer. On Friday, Judge Jonathan Bennett paid tribute to 71-year-old Mr Bates, of Ashbourne, at Smith's sentencing hearing.

He said: "He was an active man, one of the things he loved to do was to ride his bike with his friends over long distances although he was on his own on this day. He was a very popular man, over 300 people attended his funeral in Ashbourne.

"His family miss him dreadfully, they had no chance to say farewell and that's a tragedy." Derby Crown Court heard how Smith struck Mr Bates as he rode on the A515 between Clifton and Ashbourne on September 10, 2019.

His sentencing hearing was told how minutes before the collision the defendant narrowly avoided an earlier collision with a car. Jailing the defendant, of Middleton-by-Wirksworth, for seven months, Judge Bennett said: "This was not a prolonged case of very bad driving and there was no issue with drugs or alcohol.

"Was there inappropriate speed? Yes, it's not excessive speed but you were driving at above the speed limit. There was no issue with you, for example, using a mobile phone or having a poorly maintained vehicle.

"Unfortunately, the whole issue about this case this that you just did not see him, full stop. You did not realise what happened until you had hit him.."

Mr Bates, a retired builder, died when he was riding a bicycle which collided with a Volvo lorry being driven by the defendant on September 10, 2019. Police shut the road between Darley Moor and Ashbourne at around 3.30pm and it reopened at around 7pm.

Smith, of King Street, had originally denied a more serious charge of causing death by dangerous driving but in May of this year admitted a lesser charge of causing death by careless driving. Judge Bennett said: "I suggest this was a case of momentary inattention, the visibility on the road on that day was absolutely fine.

"(Moments before the collision) another lorry ahead of you had seen the cyclist and had moved over, you just did not see him. Also it is a fact that three minutes earlier you had been behind a Peugeot speeding and you had to take evasive action to avoid that Peugeot, you had to move over the white centre line because you were too close.

"You have a previous conviction from 2016 for careless driving where you failed to check the height and hit a bridge." Following his death Mr Bates, from Clifton, was described by his family as "young at heart" and a "lovely man".

They said he was "loved by everyone who knew him and [his] death has left a big hole in the lives of his loved ones". At the time, his daughter said: “Dad had a passion for cycling and motorbikes and kept canaries as a hobby. He was full of life and always on the go. We will miss him a great deal.”

https://www.derbytelegraph.co.uk/news/local-news/face-lorry-driver-who-killed-7475611