A hit-and-run driver who left a cyclist with life-threatening injuries was shamed into giving himself up by an appeal in the Telegraph & Argus.

Bradford magistrates were told that Darren Hodgson handed himself to police on the day the T&A carried a front page story about how his victim Paul Lupton remained in a coma in hospital.

Mr Lupton, 24, suffered severe head injuries in the collision and spent several weeks in intensive care, the court was told.

Hodgson, 25, of Wakefield Road, Dudley Hill, Bradford, yesterday pleaded guilty to careless driving, failing to stop after an accident and failing to report it. He also admitted driving with excess alcohol and without insurance three months after the accident.

Magistrates ordered the preparation of a pre-sentence report, considering all options including imprisonment, and bailed Hodgson to return to court on October 3.

Nadine Clough, prosecuting, said Mr Lupton was riding a cycle belonging to a 15-year-old girl along Bowling Back Lane on January 19.

The girl had warned him to watch out for vehicles, but he insisted it would be "all right".

She could hear a car coming and saw it hit Mr Lupton. She turned away and when she looked again she could see him in the road about four or five metres in front of her.

She could see blood and heard Mr Lupton say: "I want my mum."

Hodgson failed to stop and drove to a secluded spot nearby where the vehicle was abandoned.

On January 27, the day of the T&A's story, Hodgson went to a police station with his solicitor and identified himself as the driver.

He said that prior to the collision one of his child's toys had become caught in the car's control pedals and he was looking down trying to free it.

"The Crown accepts that the manner of Mr Lupton's riding was a contributory factor in the accident," said Miss Clough.

On April 23, police were called to an accident in Thornton Road, in which Hodgson's vehicle had collided with the rear of a taxi. He was breath-tested and gave an alcohol reading of 67 mcgs, the legal limit being 35.

Suggesting the consideration of a pre-sentence report, Hodgson's solicitor Paul Milner said there were mitigating circumstances which he would detail at the next hearing.

Mr Lupton's mother Linda Murgatroyd, 42, of Hall Lane, East Bowling, Bradford, and her family had kept a vigil at his bedside until he regained consciousness.

Although he had been discharged from hospital he is still receiving treatment for his injuries.

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