A 25-year-old motorist was cleared of running over a man and seriously injuring him after a magistrate ruled the driver could not have thought the pedestrian would suddenly walk in to the road.

Charlton Diacono was on his way to pick up his girlfriend and drive her to work on July 16, 2009, at 6am when a man appeared on the road four metres in front of his car.

Mr Diacono slammed on the brakes but did not manage to avoid the man who sustained serious head injuries that kept him in hospital for three months.

Magistrate Consuelo Scerri Herrera heard that Mr Diacono was driving at about 50 kilometres an hour along Coronation Street, Cospicua, close to the police station. He noticed a man run along the pavement and suddenly walk on to the road. There were two zebra crossings close by.

The pedestrian said he did not remember what happened. All he recalled was that it was early in the morning and that he had just parked his van and locked it. Next thing he knew, he was in hospital.

The magistrate concluded that Mr Diacono could not have predicted that the pedestrian would cross the road and, therefore, his actions did not amount to recklessness and he could not be held responsible for the accident.