150 mph M25 8-10
Discussion
ging84 said:
Makes no difference to dangerous driving. If it was dangerous for anyone to drive 150 there at that time, it was dangerous for everyone, the law is very clear in that respect.
Without any other aggravating factors to make it dangerous driving, the police have either acted unreasonably by charging with DD instead of speeding or the drivers of the cars following also should have been arrested and thier cars siesed.
Balls - public interest defence.Without any other aggravating factors to make it dangerous driving, the police have either acted unreasonably by charging with DD instead of speeding or the drivers of the cars following also should have been arrested and thier cars siesed.
ging84 said:
The law is very clear that no of those factors make any difference to determining what is dangerous driving.
Nor does the fact that the person charged was in a very high performance no doubt with capabilities far beyond that of the police cars.
The law is clear that police who have undergone extensive advanced driving training are not able to safely drive quickly vs some random? Right oh mate.Nor does the fact that the person charged was in a very high performance no doubt with capabilities far beyond that of the police cars.
I doubt the police were following in an Astra either.
So who will start trolling the Surrey police twitter feed by quoting the Ferrari California stopping distances, the wonders of carbon ceramic brakes, better tyres an such like that would allow the Ferrari to stop from 150mph in the space/time it takes a regular car on ditch finders at 70mph.
On a serious note getting caught at that speed is not a good move, you're going to need one hell of a lawyer to get out of that as I doubt the "I need a poo" excuse will work.....
On a serious note getting caught at that speed is not a good move, you're going to need one hell of a lawyer to get out of that as I doubt the "I need a poo" excuse will work.....
The calibre of a large chunk of the reies on here are poor to say the least. 150 isn't appropriate on UK roads whichever way you cut it. If you're going to do it though, then don't be surprised if you get pulled and have the book thrown at you.
As for the comments about the police being arrested too, that's just plain stupid.
As for the comments about the police being arrested too, that's just plain stupid.
LoonR1 said:
The calibre of a large chunk of the reies on here are poor to say the least. 150 isn't appropriate on UK roads whichever way you cut it. If you're going to do it though, then don't be surprised if you get pulled and have the book thrown at you.
As for the comments about the police being arrested too, that's just plain stupid.
My point is not that the police should have been arrested, but forces should stop automatically charging high speeds with dangerous drivingAs for the comments about the police being arrested too, that's just plain stupid.
there are very clear laws on speeding, with maximum sentences, but this no longer seems enough for some forces, so people get charged with dangerous driving on speed alone.
It is an outrageous practice, if they feel the maximum sentence for speeding is too lenient, they should lobby for a change in the law, not twist the existing laws.
okgo said:
dhead. Well done to the coppers.
There is a time and a place for over twice the speed limit, roads with other people are not it.
"were the police arrested for the same offence?" - what has happened to this place? It just seems to be filled with morons now.
There is a time and a place for over twice the speed limit, roads with other people are not it.
"were the police arrested for the same offence?" - what has happened to this place? It just seems to be filled with morons now.
Speeding isn't automatically dangerous. Neither is driving with bald tyres. Or no MOT. Or dodgy brakes. or no lights. All of them can be done perfectly safely depending on the circumstances. All they do is increase risk. But some people are either exceptionally stupid or selfish (or both) and therefore incapable of judging risk. The laws are there to protect people from the stupid and the selfish.
ging84 said:
My point is not that the police should have been arrested, but forces should stop automatically charging high speeds with dangerous driving
there are very clear laws on speeding, with maximum sentences, but this no longer seems enough for some forces, so people get charged with dangerous driving on speed alone.
It is an outrageous practice, if they feel the maximum sentence for speeding is too lenient, they should lobby for a change in the law, not twist the existing laws.
You may claim that was your point but it wasn't. You were trying to be clever and explicitly asked if the police were to face charges too. Whatever you were implying wasn't as clear. there are very clear laws on speeding, with maximum sentences, but this no longer seems enough for some forces, so people get charged with dangerous driving on speed alone.
It is an outrageous practice, if they feel the maximum sentence for speeding is too lenient, they should lobby for a change in the law, not twist the existing laws.
Have a look at the definition of Dangerous driving and see if this would meet that criteria at first look. I'd say driving at more than double the maximum permissible speed on the road falls significantly below the standard expected of a reasonable driver.
LoonR1 said:
The calibre of a large chunk of the reies on here are poor to say the least. 150 isn't appropriate on UK roads whichever way you cut it. If you're going to do it though, then don't be surprised if you get pulled and have the book thrown at you.
As for the comments about the police being arrested too, that's just plain stupid.
Good post, I agree entirely. Some of the half baked, twisted logic on display here beggars belief.As for the comments about the police being arrested too, that's just plain stupid.
ging84 said:
My point is not that the police should have been arrested, but forces should stop automatically charging high speeds with dangerous driving
there are very clear laws on speeding, with maximum sentences, but this no longer seems enough for some forces, so people get charged with dangerous driving on speed alone.
It is an outrageous practice, if they feel the maximum sentence for speeding is too lenient, they should lobby for a change in the law, not twist the existing laws.
I found this in 30 seconds. Dont know any more about it though. there are very clear laws on speeding, with maximum sentences, but this no longer seems enough for some forces, so people get charged with dangerous driving on speed alone.
It is an outrageous practice, if they feel the maximum sentence for speeding is too lenient, they should lobby for a change in the law, not twist the existing laws.
" Unfortunately, the careful and competent driver does not engage in pursuits, he does not contravene traffic signs and speed limits. Yes, a police officer has exemptions under road traffic legislation but there is no exemption from dangerous driving.
If there are no legal exemptions permitting dangerous driving by a police officer during a pursuit, what distinguishes a police pursuit driver from the subject he is pursuing? The obvious answer is his training and his skill. Unfortunately, since the case of R v Bannister, a jury is not permitted to take into account an officer’s special skill and training in determining whether the driving was dangerous only against the standard of the careful and competent driver."
It came from http://www.policemag.co.uk/editions/397.aspx
So it seems they are not exempt according to that.
LoonR1 said:
You may claim that was your point but it wasn't. You were trying to be clever and explicitly asked if the police were to face charges too. Whatever you were implying wasn't as clear.
Have a look at the definition of Dangerous driving and see if this would meet that criteria at first look. I'd say driving at more than double the maximum permissible speed on the road falls significantly below the standard expected of a reasonable driver.
The it also needs to be dangerous, you could argue that speed alone above a certain threshold is dangerous, but then you would also then have to say, no police driver should ever drive above that threshold without facing charges, because they have no exemption for dangerous driving.Have a look at the definition of Dangerous driving and see if this would meet that criteria at first look. I'd say driving at more than double the maximum permissible speed on the road falls significantly below the standard expected of a reasonable driver.
They shouldn't have it both ways, they shouldn't let their drivers drive above this threshold, but automatically charge everyone else with dangerous driving for exceeding it.
ging84 said:
My point is not that the police should have been arrested, but forces should stop automatically charging high speeds with dangerous driving
there are very clear laws on speeding, with maximum sentences, but this no longer seems enough for some forces, so people get charged with dangerous driving on speed alone.
It is an outrageous practice, if they feel the maximum sentence for speeding is too lenient, they should lobby for a change in the law, not twist the existing laws.
You could easily argue the speed alone is dangerous when it's on a road occupied by other people doing ~70, simply because of the disparity in speed. there are very clear laws on speeding, with maximum sentences, but this no longer seems enough for some forces, so people get charged with dangerous driving on speed alone.
It is an outrageous practice, if they feel the maximum sentence for speeding is too lenient, they should lobby for a change in the law, not twist the existing laws.
Is 150mph dangerous on a closed off M25? Probably not in a suitable car. Is it dangerous when other people are just bimbling along doing their commute and not expecting someone to be closing on them at twice their speed? Most people would argue yes.
Time and a place for everything, and this was neither.
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