A doctor facing charges of grievous bodily harm after reversing into a motorcyclist was also the first to provide medical help at the scene, a court has heard.

Efunbowale Adeola Johnson, 63, was arraigned in front of Magistrate Claire Stafrace Zammit charged with involuntary grievous bodily harm and reckless driving. 

Defence lawyer Stefano Filletti explained that on Wednesday the woman had been backing out of a parking bay with the indicators switched on when she heard a thud on the back bumper of the vehicle. 

The thud turned out to be a collision with a local man, who had been driving by with his motorcycle. 

The prosecution said it was objecting to a request for bail purely because Johnson is a foreign national and would be shortly returning to her home in the UK.

Otherwise, police inspector Joseph Mallia said the woman had cooperated fully and was even the first to give the man medical assistance as she is a doctor. 

Filletti argued that since Johnson being foreign was the only factor supporting an objection to bail, the court should find alternative remedies to accommodate the request. 

The accused, he said, is a reputable medical professional who does not pose a material flight risk nor a risk of tampering with evidence. 

This is not a case of someone speeding recklessly and mowing down a pedestrian, but one where the facts of what happened are still contested. 

The act of exiting a parking bay, he said, always comes with an element of reduced vision and the facts of the case are still “sketchy”. 

The woman’s husband, who is also a doctor, agreed to step in as a guarantor for his wife and ensure that she returned to Malta to attend her court sittings. 

Filletti said this would bind both of them to attend her hearings and, since they are both employed with the NHS, would have serious repercussions on both of their careers should they fail to comply. 

Bail was granted against a €5,000 deposit and a €10,000.

She was also ordered to email the prosecuting inspector weekly and inform the court if she changed her address.

Lawyer Maurice Meli also appeared for the accused.