Speeding Policeman

[hermes]

When that copper got caught driving over 150mph I remember most people on here were not very sympathetic (ex-policemen excepted ).
It seems the DPP agrees and is challenging the judges aquittal. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/shropshire/4664592.stm

 

[Slogger]

MY MONEY says he will walk away from this one


or speed at the speed of the fastest speeding thing he can fit into


seriously though he has a right to take the car to its limits cos he is a copper and coppers chase criminals or they used to

then again i see it as my right to speed if and when the road is empty

too many draconian rules = no one will obey any rules and you will get rebellion

i am still waiting for the majority of motoring public in the uk to wake up and realise just how powerfull they really are

the aa and rac have a massive amount of power if they only would use it to protect there members and demand the motorist his rights

 

[M-O-R]

Was only this morning Plod were on a mission to stop drivers taking a No Left Turn in Watford town centre (except bus/taxi/cyclist/motorcycle!) and was fined £30 for the pleasure.

Still. I have used that shortcut many times and avoided being late to work. When you look at it from another perspective i suppose i have "paid" to use that No Left Turn about £1.00 for the 30 times i have used it in the last 3 months.

Seemed like a cash raising excercise really as i was told straight away i wouldnt be getting points and was away up the short cut within 2/3 minutes. 4 other drivers got pulled over just whilst i was there.

Having a pro-longued court case 3 years ago for speeding/not identifying the driver i vehemently object to this driver being "let off".

M-O-R

 

[BoDon]

So, presumably the copper in question is familiar with the UK Law with regards to Traffic Offences, speeding etc.... I am... but I accept my punishment for foolishly being caught! ... 107mph = 6 points + £600 fine.

Could he have not taken the car to Germany? he could have been there and back in a day and now one would have been any the wiser, and his curiosity solved, but we are talking about an 'intelligent officer of the law' aren't we??

 

[AdamW]

The guidelines allow for officers to exceed limits, but never to drive at more than 120mph.

So, in West Mercia, all I have to do is keep my speed above 120mph and they won't catch me? Sweet!

(I know that is just in training but it is written in a rather ambiguous fashion... the standard of BBC English is falling!)

If I am driving a company car and get caught speeding, I get the points and I pay the fine. If I do it so often I lose my licence, I am decreasing my usefulness to the company.

So, I think he should be pointed and fined for the 39mph he was doing over the 120mph he is "allowed" to do. That's pretty leanient too, I reckon. That would be 6 points and about £600 then.

 

[BoDon]

The guidelines allow for officers to exceed limits, but never to drive at more than 120mph.

Aye, that might restore some of my 'faith' in the system.

Just heard though the courts have overturned his 'aquittal'.
So lets hope he gets his 6 + 600!!

 

[hermes]

I think he deserves a £600 fine just for wearing that moustache.

 

[keyplayer]

It's not a moustache, it's a collection of squashed insects.

 

[ninebob]

Just heard though the courts have overturned his 'aquittal'.

Yep, they have: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/shropshire/4669594.stm

So lets hope he gets his 6 + 600!!

I agree.

 

[ban-all-sheds]

I think he deserves a £600 fine just for wearing that moustache.

I thought Freddy Mercury was dead....

Have there been two of these instances recently? I paid very little attention to this case - I thought it was a Chief Constable who had been nabbed, and then let off, and his excuse was that he was evaluating the car, or something.

And on that basis I was appalled, but in my mind it just became one more instance of police drivers being let off. Dozens of people are killed each year in police chases, not all of them are drivers or passengers in the vehicles being pursued, but how many prosecutions result?

However, there is a genuine need for police drivers to be competent and experienced at driving at high speeds, and there is a lot of merit in the argument that they need to practice in non-emergency situations when they are less distracted. Pilots practice engine failures, engine fires, forced landings, precautionary forced landings, spin recovery, stall recovery etc etc - basically to familiarise themselves with the behaviour of their machine at the limits, so that when it happens for real they know what to do.

So how should we ensure that police drivers get the training, practice and familiarisation that they need? And maybe start to reduce the number of innocent people killed by them?

 

[keyplayer]

So how should we ensure that police drivers get the training, practice and familiarisation that they need? And maybe start to reduce the number of innocent people killed by them?

Banning the manufacture and sale of road cars capable of excessive speeds would be a good starting place. By excessive I mean far beyond the national speed limit. Acceleration restrictions too.

 

[ban-all-sheds]

Track days?

Places with no, or much higher speed limits?

My kitchen is full of things I could use to kill people, and in my garage are things that even slogger would admire as weapons.

Just because you own something that can be used illegally doesn't mean you have to use it that way...

 

[keyplayer]

Track days?

Places with no, or much higher speed limits?

My kitchen is full of things I could use to kill people, and in my garage are things that even slogger would admire as weapons.

Just because you own something that can be used illegally doesn't mean you have to use it that way...

Well I disagree. Track days can be restricted to vehicles that go nowhere but the track. Speed limits should be in place everywhere. The types of things (I presume) to be found in your garage and kitchen are potentially lethal granted, but are not actually killing people daily. Cars are.

Where do you stand on Mr Hamilton's antics? Would you bring back handguns? Far less people are shot than killed on the roads. Macho car culture has no place in a civilised society. And by definition neither does Jeremy Clarkson!

 

[2scoops0406]

Police drivers are supposed to be able to handle cars at high speed. A racing driver accquantaince of mine recently supervised a team of expert police drivers at silvertone, and pronounced them as absolutely sh**e at driving quickly. The techniques that they were taught were either more in tune with the cars of Dixon of Dock greens era, or were imported American techniques, all of which were either irrelevant or dangerous on modern British roads with modern European cars. He laughingly said he should become a getaway driver, 'cos outrunning that bunch of clowns would be a piece of the proverbial.

 

[Moz]

this reminds me of the 2 coppers in that "Early Doors " sitcom

they go in the back of the pub an are all flustered an upset ,landlord says have you lads been chasing villians , with which they laughingly say NO ...they had just been driving the hight response polica car an opened it up on dual carriageway to see fast they could get in it ..an it went like sh*t off a shovel ....lol