An 82-year-old former vicar is set to stand trial over a car accident in Essex that resulted in serious injury to a passenger. Barrie Slatter, previously a reverend at St Andrew’s Church in Little Glemham, Suffolk, is charged with causing serious injury by careless driving following a collision near Colchester United Football Club’s stadium.

According to the prosecution, Slatter was driving his Jaguar XF Prestige when he struck the rear of another vehicle, causing it to overturn. Prosecutor George Dixon described the incident as unusual, noting that the impact led the front car to flip onto its roof. The passenger in the second vehicle sustained severe injuries, losing all the fingers and thumb on her left hand.

The crash took place in September of the previous year in the Essex city of Colchester. Slatter, who resides in Sotherton, Suffolk, appeared before justices of the peace in Chelmsford but did not enter a plea during that hearing. He has elected for a trial and was granted bail ahead of his next court appearance at Ipswich Crown Court, scheduled for August 3.