Careless driving charge - pls help

[postggj]

I agree, civility costs nothing and negative personal attacks shows a distinct lack of maturity and grey matter

[Aretnap]

Depends on their previous history. They may not get a custodial sentence but may get a suspended one.

That's entirely incorrect. The maximum sentence is a £5000 fine* and a driving ban, regardless of previous history.** He can't get a prison sentence - suspended or otherwise - unless he doesn't pay his fine, or he drives while banned.

 

* In practice the fine will be means tested, and won't be anywhere close to £5000 unless he's unusually wealthy.

** In theory, though rarely in practice, you could get a community order for persistent non-imprisonable offences, but your previous history can't make a non-imprisonable offence become imprisonable.

[Horsen]

Banditqueen. What is your problem with stating facts. Tevez was first convicted of speeding and not having a valid UK licence. Two other players have been convicted also for speeding. One City youth player is serving time for causing death by dangerous driving. Those are facts. Having seen first hand the damage done to a 4 year old child by a speeding motorist I have no sympathy for speeders, so please do not go around calling people. From my reading of the original post the OP is pleading guilty and is asking for help in composing their statement.

[gavva1]

At the risk of flaming this thread (further...?) Thank-you to those who contributed,especially to the serving Traffic Officer, T.C. To clarify: I accept, on here, what I did was an outright Dumb thing to do, & also conveyed this to the magistrates. (BanditQueen, pls feel free to agree - when you've changed your tampon). I didn't consult the duty solicitor, & didn't hide behind a "guilty-by-post" plea. I put a short statement together, highlighting my otherwise perfect driving record & lengthy NCB to mitigate the stupidity of what I did on that evening. I dressed smartly, went to court & admitted my guilt.

 

The magistrate stated that the officer who dealt with me would've been well within his powers to mark this up as S2. Dangerous Driving, with an additional charge for the speeding. The only caveat is that the speed wasn't recorded on a VASCAR device, but paced using an ANPR camera. It's my understanding it would still have counted. The Suffolk Police Traffic cop was a genuinely decent guy, & has knowingly given me a chance to put my driving right, by not slamming me for it, as did the magistates - I'm equally grateful to both. I got 9 points & a fine, lesson learned. I was never on here to try & "get off it", just to gain some advice on how to defend myself, as is my right.

 

A word of warning to anybody viewing this thread who is facing a similar situation, the traffic officer is spot-on with his advice, as is aretnap, but other poster's talk of custodial penalties etc. - They aren't on the tariff for this offence - & some of the "facts" are waaay off base. The legal advice I received, (from several sources) suggested that internet forums are a bad source of information on legal matters - I cannot agree with that, only that you must distinguish between helpful people who work in this area, & those on here to scaremonger.

[renegadeimp]

This might sound a bit weird, but really it was a good result. You could have had a MUCH worse punishment. I admit, i went a little overboard, but i always tend to look at the worst outcome so the person can prepare. How you described it, it could have easily ended in a ban, points AND a fine.

[crem]

I think the most offensive thing in this entire thread has been the abusive language from BanditQueen!

 

If he/she finds the discussion in this thread to be so bad then perhaps it would be best for BanditQueen to simply avoid it and read/post only in threads that are less likely to curdle their blood.

[renegadeimp]

If theres a post that offends, dont post about it as it will draw attention to it. Just flag it and let the mods handle it.

[sailor sam]

At the risk of flaming this thread (further...?) Thank-you to those who contributed,especially to the serving Traffic Officer, T.C. To clarify: I accept, on here, what I did was an outright Dumb thing to do, & also conveyed this to the magistrates. (BanditQueen, pls feel free to agree - when you've changed your tampon). I didn't consult the duty solicitor, & didn't hide behind a "guilty-by-post" plea. I put a short statement together, highlighting my otherwise perfect driving record & lengthy NCB to mitigate the stupidity of what I did on that evening. I dressed smartly, went to court & admitted my guilt.

 

The magistrate stated that the officer who dealt with me would've been well within his powers to mark this up as S2. Dangerous Driving, with an additional charge for the speeding. The only caveat is that the speed wasn't recorded on a VASCAR device, but paced using an ANPR camera. It's my understanding it would still have counted. The Suffolk Police Traffic cop was a genuinely decent guy, & has knowingly given me a chance to put my driving right, by not slamming me for it, as did the magistates - I'm equally grateful to both. I got 9 points & a fine, lesson learned. I was never on here to try & "get off it", just to gain some advice on how to defend myself, as is my right.

 

A word of warning to anybody viewing this thread who is facing a similar situation, the traffic officer is spot-on with his advice, as is aretnap, but other poster's talk of custodial penalties etc. - They aren't on the tariff for this offence - & some of the "facts" are waaay off base. The legal advice I received, (from several sources) suggested that internet forums are a bad source of information on legal matters - I cannot agree with that, only that you must distinguish between helpful people who work in this area, & those on here to scaremonger.

 

Err, I hope you are not including me in that. I may of mentioned that you were reckless (something I still think you were) and perhaps even suggested a ban is possible but I never hinted at a custodial sentence. Those who did clearly should not be giving advice anyway. A custodial sentence would only be available if you caused a fatality.

 

Please Note

 

The advice I offer will be based on the information given by the person needing it. All my advice is based on my experiences and knowledge gained in working in the motor and passenger transport industries in various capacities. Although my advice will always be sincere, it should be used as guidence only.

 

I would always urge to seek face to face professional advice for clarification prior to taking any action.

 

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