Nottingham grandad left an amputee by ‘angry and selfish’ crash driver’s actions
Victim Stephen Kerry, pictured, was on the way home from seeing his wife in hospital when the crash took place
Martin Naylor Courts and legal affairs correspondent 16:56, 13 Jan 2026Updated 17:00, 13 Jan 2026
View 5 ImagesStephen Kerry had to have part of a leg amputated(Image: Supplied)
A Nottingham grandad had to have part of a leg amputated and can no longer act as full-time carer for his wife after an "angry" driver caused a crash he then fled from.
Stephen Kerry, of Aspley, now might have to live in a residential centre and is unable to return to the house he has lived in with his wife, Karen, for the past 36 years because of his injury.
The 65-year-old victim was on his way home from a hospital visit to see her ahead of her heart surgery when a van being driven by Callum Knott crashed into his vehicle in Valley Road.
The dad-of-two suffered fractures to his shoulder, thigh bone, many ribs, and significant chest injuries which required emergency surgery.
The keen fisherman and gardener was placed in an induced coma and kept in the intensive care unit for several weeks.
But the grandfather-of-four's seriously injured right leg did not recover sufficiently, and he underwent an above-the-knee amputation three weeks after the collision.
View 5 ImagesStephen Kerry with his granddaughter Mackenzie(Image: Supplied)
Jailing dad-of-five Knott for four years today (Tuesday, January 13), Judge Steven Coupland said: "All of these offences arise from your anger and selfishness.
"Your driving was both aggressive and dangerous. You drove along Valley Road at speed, weaving in and out of traffic.
"The pictures of the wreckage show the graphic effect of the impact.
"Mr Kerry suffered catastrophic and life-changing injuries and has endured at least seven operations including the amputation of one of his legs and he remains in hospital now.
"Your reaction was not to stop but to drive off."
Declan Austin, prosecuting at Nottingham Crown Court, said emergency services were called to Valley Road, between Hucknall[1] Road and Nottingham Road, shortly after 8pm on Sunday, September 28, last year, following reports a van and two cars had been involved in a collision.
He said the van being driven by Knott was then involved in a collision with two further vehicles in Wallis Street and at the junction of Arnold Road and Queensberry Street.
View 5 ImagesKaren Kerry, Stephen Kerry, Samantha Kerry and granddaughter Mackenzie(Image: Supplied)
The prosecutor said: "On Valley Road, the defendant clipped an Audi A5 containing a woman, her daughter and two of her daughter's friends (all aged 12) which sent the car flying across the central reservation and leading to a catastrophic head-on collision with Mr Kerry, who was on his way home after visiting his wife in hospital.
"The defendant carried on driving away from the scene and ended up driving on the wrong side of the road to overtake a stationary line of traffic at some lights.
"There was one collision and then another with a 23-year-old woman who was parked up in her car and was driven into by the defendant.
All of the victims were taken to hospital.
"(The A5 driver) suffered fractures to her leg and ankle and she is still wearing a brace and walking with the help of crutches today.
"Mr Kerry's injuries are a lot greater, he's had seven operations as a result and it is clear his injuries are catastrophic.
"Unfortunately, due to a risk to life, his leg was amputated. He still struggles to speak."
Mrs Kerry, Mr Kerry's wife, read her own victim impact statement to the court.
In it, she said, "On September 28, 2025, our lives changed forever.
View 5 ImagesStephen Kerry with newborn granddaughter Mackenzie(Image: Supplied)
"To hear Stephen had been involved in a road traffic collision through no fault of his own was devastating.
"We used to enjoy going on holiday with others and I now believe our social life is extinct. This month we should have been enjoying our 40th wedding anniversary and instead of enjoying a joyous time we are in a very dark place."
Jason Kerry, the son of Mr Kerry, also read his own statement to the court.
In it, he said: "My father was an active person for his age and the main carer for my mum.
"This has affected me a lot more than I could have imagined, my mental health has taken a battering and I sincerely hope this idiot realises how much he has affected our family."
View 5 ImagesStephen Kerry had to have part of a leg amputated(Image: Supplied)
Knott, 41, of no fixed address, handed himself into the police[2] two days after the incident and gave a prepared statement in which he denied the offences.
But he later pleaded guilty to three counts of causing serious injury through dangerous driving, failing to stop at the scene of an accident and failing to report an accident.
He also admitted criminal damage and possession of a knife in relation to an incident earlier that day at his ex-partner's address when he used a knife to slash her car tyres before leaving in his van.
The defendant has 17 previous convictions for 39 offences.
Luc Chignell, mitigating, said his client pleaded guilty to all of the offences at the first opportunity.
He said: "It goes without saying that he did not intend to cause the devastation that he did that day and he genuinely wants to apologise.
"This will be the first prison sentence he has served for over a decade."
Rachel Botterill, partner in the JMW catastrophic injury team and who is representing Mr Kerry, said: "Stephen has not been home since the accident, and he is unable to return to the house he has lived in with his wife because of his injury.
"He will have to move into level access accommodation suitable for an amputee wheelchair user.
"This is an absolutely tragic case, where more than one life has now been radically changed for the worse.
"Prior to the incident, Stephen was the main carer for his wife, assisting her with personal care tasks, shopping, cooking and taking her into the community.
"He cannot do any of this and this causes him great anguish.
"Equally distressing is that he was unable to spend much time with his family - two adult children, a son and a daughter, and four grandchildren - over the Christmas[3] period because he remains in hospital.
Article continues below"Both he and his wife are extremely upset about how this incident has turned their lives upside down, forcing them to move out of their family home of 36 years and try to cope with entirely new lives that are likely to be very challenging."
The judge also disqualified Knott from driving for seven years.