driving without due care and attention

hudsonb202

i was driving home at 11:30pm doing 40mph in a 30mph going threw a controlled traffic light juction the road was well light with street lights and no other people around an conditions was good as i got round the corner there was a police car coming the other way thay turned around and i pulled on to my drive as i got out the car thay pulled up an asked me what speed iwas doing so i told them 40mph thay are now sending me to court for driving without due care and attention in there statment thay say i was doing no less than 45mph and the car looked to be moving around and turning sharpe because of my speed which it was not thay have got nothing on camera do i plead guilty or plead not guilty i would plead guilty to the speed i was doing but not to the stament of the car was moving around

kwaks

Of course the car was moving around. They are pretty useless lumps if they don't

Your first mistake was telling them you were driving at 40mph, which confirmed you were speeding. Surprisingly though they have decided not to go for this slam dunk and have taken it a notch further.

Did they tell you that you would be going to court for this offence or that they would report you for this? Due care can be dealt with by fixed penalty, so seems they may just be looking to give you a fright.

hudsonb202

it is going to court had my letter threw to say if im pleading guilty or not guilty

kwaks

ok,sorry read the original post as if it happened today.

At the time when the police spoke to you, did they tell you that you would be reported for driving without due care (ie verbal NIP)?

hudsonb202

yes they did

sarahg1969

Repost this on the forums at pepipoo.com.

kwaks

Well Hudson, if it was me I would be pleading not guilty. You know what you did (speed) and what you didn't (WDCA). If you wish to represent yourself in court, you can, or alternatively you should have legal cover on your car insurance or house insurance.

I have been in the situation of facing this charge after crashing on black ice. Lets just say the Sheriff was not happy to have the case in front of him with no evidence to support it and the PF was dragged over the coals for it.

anewman

Police try to pull this one every time a kid is hit by a car too. Sadly sometimes kids run straight out in front of cars giving the car no opportunity to stop and the inevitable happens. That isn't driving without due care and attention, it's the kid walking without due care. Example http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a3xFCzWusmI few seconds later and he could be under the wheels and dead. Motorist is the easy target for everything these days.

And I can't see how "was going no less than 45mph" would stand up in court. Car speedos over-read and the police would need a proper calibrated system to be able to show what speed was being done. Plus as mentioned above speeding and driving without due care 2 different things. Going round corners at speed, not illegal so long as you're following the speed limit and you can see around the corner properly.

There's no need to incriminate yourself IMO. I was NOT driving without due car and attention, I was NOT doing no less than 45mph, I was NOT going around corners at excessive speeds. Just respond to the accusations put towards you.

jaydeeuk1

8 replies and no ones mentioned 'think of the children'. Perhaps this place is picking up after all.

Should have said you couldn't see what speed you were doing, your cup of coffee and big mac were in the way.

sarahg1969

anewman wrote: »

Police try to pull this one every time a kid is hit by a car too. Sadly sometimes kids run straight out in front of cars giving the car no opportunity to stop and the inevitable happens. That isn't driving without due care and attention, it's the kid walking without due care. Example http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a3xFCzWusmI few seconds later and he could be under the wheels and dead. Motorist is the easy target for everything these days.

And I can't see how "was going no less than 45mph" would stand up in court. Car speedos over-read and the police would need a proper calibrated system to be able to show what speed was being done. Plus as mentioned above speeding and driving without due care 2 different things. Going round corners at speed, not illegal so long as you're following the speed limit and you can see around the corner properly.

There's no need to incriminate yourself IMO. I was NOT driving without due car and attention, I was NOT doing no less than 45mph, I was NOT going around corners at excessive speeds. Just respond to the accusations put towards you.

The trouble is if there were two officers, it will stand up in court very easily.

anewman

sarahg1969 wrote: »

The trouble is if there were two officers, it will stand up in court very easily.

What' the point in a court appearance then if it's nothing more than a kangaroo court that will cater to the whims of Police officers because more than one was present and they're willing to testify in court?