Melissa Tate: Man in court charged with causing girl’s death in hit-and-run

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The man charged with causing the death of a 10-year-old schoolgirl in a suspected hit-and-run has appeared in court.

Connor Marsden, 23, is also alleged to have been driving without a licence or insurance at the time of the collision with Melissa Tate last week.

The schoolgirl suffered serious injuries when she was struck by a vehicle in Kenton, Newcastle, on Wednesday evening.

She died in hospital the next day and her family said that her organs had been donated in the hope of saving other children.

Marsden was subsequently charged with a series of offences including causing death by dangerous driving and failure to stop.

He appeared at Newcastle Crown Court on Saturday and was remanded in custody until a further hearing next month.

Chair of the Magistrates, Win Clayton, said: “You are charged with an indictable-only offence, and that is causing death by dangerous driving.”

Marsden, of Kenton, Newcastle, has been charged with causing death by dangerous driving, causing death by driving while uninsured, causing death by driving while not having a licence, failure to stop, failure to report to police following an accident, driving otherwise than in accordance with a licence and driving without insurance.

An online fundraising page in memory of Melissa Tate has raised more than £6,000 since it was launched.

Northumbria Police Chief Inspector Chris Grice said her family were “devastated” by what has happened and asked the public to respect their privacy.

“This is understandably a difficult time for the family and it is something that nobody should have to go through,” he added.

“Specialist officers have been supporting them since Melissa was involved in the collision on Wednesday night and they continue to do so. This incident has had a big impact on the community in Kenton and I know that residents will come together to support Melissa’s family.”

Additional reporting by Press Association