A FORMER soldier has been cleared of causing the death by dangerous driving of a pensioner killed in a motorway crash.

Mark Coates, 28, lost control of his car on the A1(M) southbound near Durham City and crashed through a fence into a field, causing a startled horse to break free and run on to the carriageway.

The horse then collided with a car driven by 71-year-old James Balmer, of Whitehouse Drive, Stockton, who died two days later from his injuries.

Yesterday, Coates was cleared by a jury at Teesside Crown Court on a charge of causing death by dangerous driving, but convicted of the lesser charge of careless driving, which carries a fine as a maximum penalty.

There were gasps and sobs from relatives of the defendant, who wiped away tears as the verdict was announced.

His barrister, Chris Prince, told the court: "He accepts that there is nothing he can say regardless of his own regrets and remorse which can alleviate the pain the family of Mr Balmer are suffering.

"This is a matter which will continue to act upon his conscience for many years to come."

The court had heard how the crash happened on the evening of November 16 last year at the junction of the A1(M) where the A177 and A68 bisect the motorway.

Coates, of Stirling Avenue, Jarrow, South Tyneside, was said to have taken one hand off the steering wheel of his Ford Mondeo to have a sip from a bottle of blackcurrant juice when he lost control of the car.

He attempted to regain control by correcting the steering of the vehicle, but it careered down an embankment, crashing through the fence, allowing the horse to escape.

Trainee scaffolder Coates, who served ten years with the Army before being honourably discharged, was fined £500 by Judge David Bryant and banned from driving for six months.

The judge said: "It is unfortunate that the consequences from what happened were out of all proportion to your error."