A mother who was facing a retrial over the death of a motorcyclist in an accident has now admitted her guilt.

Virginia Pereira’s trial in January ended in deadlock when a jury could not reach verdicts on charges of causing death by dangerous driving and an alternative of causing death by careless driving.

A fresh date was set for July but 62-year-old Pereira (pictured right) today entered a guilty plea through a Portuguese interpreter to the lesser charge of causing death by careless driving.

Prosecutor Martin Yale said the decision to accept the plea had been taken after consulting with the family of victim Michael Sharp.

Pereira, of Portland Street, Chatham, was alleged to have ignored stop signs at a junction and driven into the 1000cc Honda motorcycle’s path.

Mr Sharp, 57, was catapulted into the air and struck a traffic island. He died from multiple injuries at the scene on the A229 at Blue Bell Hill near the Lower Bell pub.

Maidstone Crown Court heard the victim left his Chatham home on the morning of July 28 2011 to go to Aylesford to pay in a cheque at his bank.

Scene of fatal crash in Blue Bell Hill in July 2011

His wife had offered to do it but Mr Sharp said he would go and then visit his brother.

Pereira left Maidstone with her daughter in the front passenger seat of her Vauxhall Corsa and headed for a slip road at the bottom of Blue Bell Hill.

Jack Laker was driving behind Pereira on the A229 and saw she was driving slowly. Other traffic was overtaking her. She slowed further as she approached the junction and then accelerated straight across it.

Mr Yale said Pereira completely failed to heed stop signs clearly positioned at the junction and a solid white line across the road, as well as ‘Stop’ painted on the road.

Mr Laker saw Mr Sharp (pictured right) approaching and shouted ‘Stop’ to Pereira. The front of the Corsa hit the rear nearside of the motorbike, which then crashed into a traffic island.

Mr Laker stopped and remonstrated with Pereira. He said she told him she had not seen the motorcycle.

Adjourning sentence for reports until May 20 and granting bail, Judge David Griffith-Jones QC told Pereira: “I must warn you that you stand at risk of an immediate prison sentence.”