A Parkinson’s Disease sufferer who caused the death of a cyclist after he blacked out at the wheel of his car has been given a suspended sentence.

Dudley Salisbury, 65, did not tell licensing authorities that in 2009 he suffered a blackout, and carried on driving.

But on October 2, 2013 he lost control of his car in Shorncliffe Road, Folkestone and hit a cyclist who was thrown into the air and knocked against a wall.

A witness told police that it was as if the driver had had a heart attack as there was no erratic driving. “The car veered at normal speed onto the other side of the road, colliding with the cyclist,” she said.

“It was a selfish act on your part not to tell DVLA and because of that and your driving on this occasion a man has been killed” - Judge Adele Williams

Despite efforts to treat the man, a foreign national, he died at the scene from head injuries, Canterbury Crown Court was told.

Salisbury admitted causing death by careless driving and was given an eight-month prison sentence, suspended for two years.

Passing sentence, Judge Adele Williams said: “It was a selfish act on your part not to tell DVLA and because of that and your driving on this occasion a man has been killed.”

Warwick Tatford, prosecuting, said the man who died was single, 50 and came from abroad.

After the crash Salisbury, who lives in Bouverie Road West, Folkestone, was taken to hospital.

“Salisbury has had Parkinson’s Disease for a long time and it appears that he had a blackout caused by his condition,” Mr Tatford said. “There appears to be no other explanation and it is very much a tragic accident.

“But what is reprehensible here is that although he told DVLA about his Parkinson’s many years ago, in 2009 he had a blackout. A nurse told him to report this to DVLA but he did not.

It may be the case that if he had reported that he would not have been driving and the accident would not have happened.”

Miss Priya Dave, defending, said Salisbury, a former motor mechanic and undertaker, was remorseful over the accident. He surrendered his licence after the crash and had no intention of driving again.

He was now in a wheelchair and his speech and memory had been affected by what happened.

Judge Williams also made Salisbury the subject of a curfew, told him to pay £1,000 towards prosecution costs, banned him from driving for five years and ordered him to take an extended driving test after the ban.

“I have done that because I seek to ensure you will never drive again,” she said.