The sticky brown stuff is about to hit the fan
Discussion
From a mailing list...........
When this gets out, how can photo evidence ever be acceptable again??
"Spot the difference between the two numberplates !
What Northants police have done is erase the original virtually illegible
numbers and letters, inverted the image and then typed in (in Photoshop or
similar) what they thought was the right reg number, mucked it about a
bit to blend in with the negative image and hoped no-one would notice.
Fortunately for me they cocked the number up, but you do have to ask
youself - how often does this happen ? In a not-so-blatant example, if
they got the reg number right who would notice ?
My solicitor says that the charges will certainly be thrown out, and when
they are, we will insist that the police/cps pursue whoever perpetrated
the forgery.
What a bunch of crooks !
When this gets out, how can photo evidence ever be acceptable again??
"Spot the difference between the two numberplates !
What Northants police have done is erase the original virtually illegible
numbers and letters, inverted the image and then typed in (in Photoshop or
similar) what they thought was the right reg number, mucked it about a
bit to blend in with the negative image and hoped no-one would notice.
Fortunately for me they cocked the number up, but you do have to ask
youself - how often does this happen ? In a not-so-blatant example, if
they got the reg number right who would notice ?
My solicitor says that the charges will certainly be thrown out, and when
they are, we will insist that the police/cps pursue whoever perpetrated
the forgery.
What a bunch of crooks !
mybrainhurts said:
From a mailing list...........
When this gets out, how can photo evidence ever be acceptable again??
"Spot the difference between the two numberplates !
What Northants police have done is erase the original virtually illegible
numbers and letters, inverted the image and then typed in (in Photoshop or
similar) what they thought was the right reg number, mucked it about a
bit to blend in with the negative image and hoped no-one would notice.
Fortunately for me they cocked the number up, but you do have to ask
youself - how often does this happen ? In a not-so-blatant example, if
they got the reg number right who would notice ?
My solicitor says that the charges will certainly be thrown out, and when
they are, we will insist that the police/cps pursue whoever perpetrated
the forgery.
What a bunch of crooks !
You were up late MBH!
I saw those pictures which had allegedly been doctored by the professional liars in the scamera partnership. I presume the driver who got the penalty was the one who owned the allegedly cop-produced "wrong" number.
>> Edited by Tafia on Thursday 25th December 17:45
james_j said:
If this is true, this is just the sort of underhand tactic that doesn't surprise me in the slightest, given the spurious arguments, dodgy statistics and general dogma exhibited by the pro-speed control lobby.
That's as may be, but tampering with the evidence and perjury are a quantum leap from that (note that that doesn't mean that I am surprised either, just making the point).
That said, the story doesn't ring true at all.
Why would the guy who they had attempted to 'fit up' ever get to know about it at all? It would be the person with the bogus number that had been used who got prosecuted. The only way that the original target of the fitting up would get to know is if the 'fitupee' contacted him, having got sight of the original negative.
Unless the accusation is that they made up a photo incorrectly with the wrong number, purely to submit as evidence, because the original did not show the number without enhancement, and no one picked the error up.
If that is the allegation, there must be thousands of these in Northants. After all, what are the odds against someone making such mistake and it not being picked up? Pretty high, I would have thought.
>> Edited by jeffreyarcher on Friday 26th December 00:43
jeffreyarcher said:
Unless the accusation is that they made up a photo incorrectly with the wrong number, purely to submit as evidence, because the original did not show the number without enhancement, and no one picked the error up.
If that is the allegation, there must be thousands of these in Northants. After all, what are the odds against someone making such mistake and it not being picked up? Pretty high, I would have thought.
Yes, that's what is alleged to have happened.
mybrainhurts said:
jeffreyarcher said:
Unless the accusation is that they made up a photo incorrectly with the wrong number, purely to submit as evidence, because the original did not show the number without enhancement, and no one picked the error up.
If that is the allegation, there must be thousands of these in Northants. After all, what are the odds against someone making such mistake and it not being picked up? Pretty high, I would have thought.
Yes, that's what is alleged to have happened.
What's wrong with using the negative? And, given that the contrast in the numberplate is sufficiently strong in the negative, it looks as though that's happened is that the positive has been (effectively) over-developed. I would have thought that a good - ie. 'contrasty' - positive should be possible from the negative shown.
That said, the 'evidence' has been doctored.
I would be surprised if this reaches court ... unless the accused keeps quiet about it (some hope eh?). Which, on the whole, is a pity.
It does suggest that requesting sight of the original evidence (eg. a negative) as well as the 'positive' is a good thing - as one or the other it might not support the prosecution's case. Of course, unless you have a copy of that evidence in your hand, there exists the possibility that the original 'evidence' might be 'doctored' to 'prove' the case - at least on the basis of this report and the assumption that it is true.
Clearly this sort of practice needs wide publicity. there must also be a full and open investigation of the procedures followed in this case and the instructions issued to the operator(s) by their managers. I assume that the software used was authorised to be on the device(s) the operator(s) used. On that basis there must have been a 'business case' for purchasing it, or a 'policy case' for retaining it - if bundled with other software installed on the device(s). A management decision is thereby implied.
On the basis of this report, could convicted motorists who did not request their evidence (because they felt it might have been them, rather than that they knew they were at fault) and/or who plead guilty on the same presumption, now ask for that evidence? Would it still be available? If this case is upheld/publicised but evidence from such previous convictions is not available ... what then?
Regardless, all the actions of the particular operator must be re-examined - just as they have been for forensic pathologists who have been discovered to have simply erred - and any previous use of such software as is alleged in this instance must call the conviction into question.
If the use of such software to 'doctor' photographs used in evidence was indeed sanctioned by senior officers, the entire list of convictions on such evidence (whether 'doctored' or not) is called into question.
However, the probability is that it will be swept under the carpet ... is my cynicism showing?
Streaky
>> Edited by streaky on Friday 26th December 16:12
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