"Maniac" driver kills nurse.....
Discussion
In todays local rag, headline - MANIAC DRIVER KILLS RETIRED NURSE.
It was a pitch black lane on a winter night, no street lights, she was wearing dark clothing, stood against a dark hedge and she was on the "wrong" side of the road according to the highway code.
He has admitted (following police measurements) that he was doing between 67mph and 72mph in a NSL.
This guy will be finding it hard enough to live with what has happened, should he really be labelled a "maniac" for doing 10% + 1mph over the limit?
responses please;
It was a pitch black lane on a winter night, no street lights, she was wearing dark clothing, stood against a dark hedge and she was on the "wrong" side of the road according to the highway code.
He has admitted (following police measurements) that he was doing between 67mph and 72mph in a NSL.
This guy will be finding it hard enough to live with what has happened, should he really be labelled a "maniac" for doing 10% + 1mph over the limit?
responses please;
[quote=big bazza]It was a pitch black lane on a winter night, no street lights, she was wearing dark clothing, stood against a dark hedge and she was on the "wrong" side of the road according to the highway code.
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Last night on the way home from Buxton, it was dark, really pi$$ing it down with rain, so much so that we had to reduce speed down to about 25/30 it was that heavy. There was a bloke walking on the wrong side, his back to us on our side of the road, wearing dark clothes and a black umbrella. No pavement. Bloody idiot, it was only because we were in the middle of the road (to avoid deep puddles) that we missed him. Some people just have no idea.
I agree, very wrong to label the bloke a maniac, more like labeling the woman an idiot, if what was said is true.
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Last night on the way home from Buxton, it was dark, really pi$$ing it down with rain, so much so that we had to reduce speed down to about 25/30 it was that heavy. There was a bloke walking on the wrong side, his back to us on our side of the road, wearing dark clothes and a black umbrella. No pavement. Bloody idiot, it was only because we were in the middle of the road (to avoid deep puddles) that we missed him. Some people just have no idea.
I agree, very wrong to label the bloke a maniac, more like labeling the woman an idiot, if what was said is true.
My first reaction was to support Mrs Fish. However:
1) If this woman was "stood" against the hedge how can we judge what is the "wrong" side of the road?
2) Why was the driver so close to the edge of the road that the woman was hit by him?
3) Was he going round a bend perhaps, and taking a "racing line"? Nothing wrong with that where there's good visibility -- I was always taught to use all the road on corners where safe -- but perhaps at night where there's a hedge you can't be sure what's just around the corner.
70mph on a good clear NSL is not dangerous but somehow this driver didn't see a pedestrian and I'm not sure we really know all the facts yet.
1) If this woman was "stood" against the hedge how can we judge what is the "wrong" side of the road?
2) Why was the driver so close to the edge of the road that the woman was hit by him?
3) Was he going round a bend perhaps, and taking a "racing line"? Nothing wrong with that where there's good visibility -- I was always taught to use all the road on corners where safe -- but perhaps at night where there's a hedge you can't be sure what's just around the corner.
70mph on a good clear NSL is not dangerous but somehow this driver didn't see a pedestrian and I'm not sure we really know all the facts yet.
OK, over on gassing, there is a bit more to the story
www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&f=23&t=119010
The bloke was overtaking another car.
I think the inquest was right, a tragic accident. He should maybe have driven a little more carefully, she should have worn clothing that was easy to see.
www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&f=23&t=119010
The bloke was overtaking another car.
I think the inquest was right, a tragic accident. He should maybe have driven a little more carefully, she should have worn clothing that was easy to see.
A 'Maniac' killed a young nurse on the A10 between Royston and Cambridge a couple of years ago.
However, the 'Maniac' was a police officer undergoing 'pursuit' training at over 110 mph when he rounded a long sweeping left hand bend and ran into the nurse who was stationary at the end of a long line of vehicles held up by road works. Now, what do you think happened to him? Banned, imprisoned, sacked?
That's right, absolutely nothing at all!
Justice, don't make me laugh!
However, the 'Maniac' was a police officer undergoing 'pursuit' training at over 110 mph when he rounded a long sweeping left hand bend and ran into the nurse who was stationary at the end of a long line of vehicles held up by road works. Now, what do you think happened to him? Banned, imprisoned, sacked?
That's right, absolutely nothing at all!
Justice, don't make me laugh!
Cooperman said:
A 'Maniac' killed a young nurse on the A10 between Royston and Cambridge a couple of years ago.
However, the 'Maniac' was a police officer undergoing 'pursuit' training at over 110 mph when he rounded a long sweeping left hand bend and ran into the nurse who was stationary at the end of a long line of vehicles held up by road works. Now, what do you think happened to him? Banned, imprisoned, sacked?
That's right, absolutely nothing at all!
Justice, don't make me laugh!
Yes indeed, this very same incident was discussed in another topic only a few weeks ago. I understood that the police driver was not the trainee, but actually the police driving instructor! It appeared that the primary safe driving rule referred to numerous times in "Roadcraft" had been completely disregarded in that instance.
Given that an innocent young woman had been killed, I am at a loss to know how that driver managed to escape (so far as I am aware) any meaningful penalty for an appalling error. Perhaps someone can tell us.
Best wishes all,
Dave.
Mrs Fish said:
OK, over on gassing, there is a bit more to the story
www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&f=23&t=119010
The bloke was overtaking another car.
I think the inquest was right, a tragic accident. He should maybe have driven a little more carefully, she should have worn clothing that was easy to see.
Useful link, thanks. Yes, the coroner seems balanced but the reporting isn't.
IIRC, the highway code recommends that walkers at night should have lights on, not just bright clothing. Certainly on the lanes round us we're constantly aware that it's not just at night that visibility can be poor, but at also dusk when shadows can cause problems. Dark clothes against a dark background at night really is asking for trouble.
The comment by the overtaken driver is also interesting. She "didn't see anything in the distance" and then suddenly she was being overtaken. I may be wrong, but there seems to be a lack of use of mirrors there. A car doing 70 doesn't appear out of nowhere. If she had seen the car earlier she could have hooted to the pedestrian, or taken action to frustrate the overtaking manouvre, and thereby saved a life.
Streetcop said:
Good day Dave.
Hope you're fine and well
Gary
Street
Hi Gary. Hope you are, as you say, fine and well, but regrettably I'm unable to say the same in this instance as I've had a bit of an accident dammit.
It was all fine up to about 0230 this morning. I was proceeding at a steady pace, minding my own business as usual, when I was suddenly involved in a minor collision.
I was on my way back to bed (in the dark) after a visit to the bathroom and wandered off course a bit and clattered a door frame with my unprotected left toes. I don't know what the damage is at the moment but I may have to get it looked at, meanwhile mobility has taken a setback and it's jolly painful.
It could have been worse though, I might have had a shunt with the car.
Best wishes all,
Dave.
Streetcop said:
Sorry to hear about your little accident..
If you have broken a toe, or small bone in your foot, the hospital will just send you away with pain killers....
Street
Well I don't want to burden the NHS unnecessarily, so unless things look particularly bad in the morning I'll probably leave them undisturbed. I'm sure they have enough to do anyhow.
Best wishes all,
Dave.
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