PC charged with causing death of sports photographer and friend of Brian Clough
Trevor Bartlett pictured with Brian Clough with the European Cup trophy. Picture: X, Nottingham Forest/John Sumpter
By Alex Storey
A police office is due in court charged with causing the death of a former newspaper photographer who covered Nottingham Forest's glory years during the 1980s. Loading audio...
Trevor Bartlett, 80, was killed after he was knocked over by a police van while using a pedestrian crossing close to his local pub in Beeston, Derby, on December 19 2023.
An investigation was launched and driver of the vehicle Steven Allcock, 33, a PC with Nottinghamshire Police, has now been charged with causing death by careless driving, the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) said.
The force had made a mandatory referral to the IOPC following the incident, which allegedly involved the van travelling in a bus lane on the A52 Derby Road, with its blue lights.
We were saddened to hear of the recent passing of Trevor Bartlett. Trevor was the photographer for the Nottingham Post for 48 years, covering our matches up and down the country and across Europe.
Trevor took the history defining photo of Trevor Francis' header against Malmo in... pic.twitter.com/aYwu7YC1v0[3]
-- Nottingham Forest (@NFFC) December 23, 2023[4]When Mr Bartlett didn't return at his usual time, his wife Sandra assumed he had been chatting to friends before she rang his phone to no answer, the Nottingham Post reported at the time.
Sandra told the newspaper: "About 7.45pm I said to my son I'll go down there and look for him because he'd never stay as late as that. I was just getting my coat when the door went. I thought it was him but it was the police.
"They said there's been a collision and he didn't make it.
Robert and I walked down at 10pm because I wanted to see where it happened and there was a detective and he told me it was a police car."
In a statement released on Tuesday, the IOPC said: "Our independent investigation followed a mandatory referral from the force after a police van Pc Allcock was driving was involved in a fatal collision at a crossing on the A52 Derby Road at Beeston, Nottingham, on December 19 2023.
"The van collided with 80-year-old Trevor Bartlett, who was on foot, and sadly he was confirmed dead at the scene.
"We consulted with the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) during our investigation and on completion we referred a file of evidence for them to consider any potential criminal offences.
"This has now led to the authorisation of the charge against Pc Allcock."
Mr Bartlett began working for the Nottingham Evening Post aged 15, leaving school on a Friday and starting at the paper on the Monday.
He worked at the paper for 45 years where he became friends with Nottingham Forest legend Brian Clough, who guided the club to two consecutive European Cup wins in 1979 and 1980.
PC Allcock will appear at Derby Magistrates' Court on January 29.