Is Court appearence Mandatory?
Discussion
I was flashed a while back in November and was doing more than 20mph over the limit.. Needless to say it went directly court and after recieving the photo's I promptly replied guilty to the court summons.
I tended court and got 6pts and £300 fine + costs, which is a pretty hefty fine and endorsement.. Would it of made any difference if I didn't attend court?
Is it mandatory to attend? I understand it makes sense to attend if it was my second offence and there was a possibility of losing my licence.. Would it be so bad to not attend for a first offence?
It's not somthing covered in the Magistrates guidelines.
Thanks for your thoughts... Loose
I tended court and got 6pts and £300 fine + costs, which is a pretty hefty fine and endorsement.. Would it of made any difference if I didn't attend court?
Is it mandatory to attend? I understand it makes sense to attend if it was my second offence and there was a possibility of losing my licence.. Would it be so bad to not attend for a first offence?
It's not somthing covered in the Magistrates guidelines.
Thanks for your thoughts... Loose
I doubt it very much that things may have been different.
Being in excess of what a CO could have resolved generally means that the severity is such that the Bench want to have a look at a person with a view to involving their powers of obligatory or discretionary disqualification. Whilst it has been known for them to accept a GP by letter in such cases, in others they have called for a personal appearance.
dvd
Being in excess of what a CO could have resolved generally means that the severity is such that the Bench want to have a look at a person with a view to involving their powers of obligatory or discretionary disqualification. Whilst it has been known for them to accept a GP by letter in such cases, in others they have called for a personal appearance.
dvd
Thanks for the reply DVD..
If you are summoned to court and a few days before your due to appear, send a letter with a guilty plea which also details mitigating cicumstances for when they decide your sentance, will this be ok.. Even if it does mean a 56 day disqualification..
I guess what I'm asking is that if you don't go to court when summoned after pleading guilty by mail.. will bib be after you?
If you are summoned to court and a few days before your due to appear, send a letter with a guilty plea which also details mitigating cicumstances for when they decide your sentance, will this be ok.. Even if it does mean a 56 day disqualification..
I guess what I'm asking is that if you don't go to court when summoned after pleading guilty by mail.. will bib be after you?
There must be a huge risk if one is disqualified 'in absentia', as you only learn of the disqualification by letter some time after the event. Thus one could be driving whilst disqualified and not know it.
It seems as though the CPS/Old Bill only pursue arrest warrants as as result of non-appearance in court following a summons if the person to be arrested lives fairly locally and within the area covered by that police force. There was, I believe, a case in which a lady living in Scotland never received the summons sent to her home in the North of England as she had moved. She knew nothing of the NiP's or the summons until she was stopped in a routine check, arrested, and driven to Yorkshire for a court appearance where, IIRC, she was acquitted of failure to supply driver details under S172.
The question is, how likely is one to be arrested if one ignores all the correspondance from the Pratnerships/CPS when the offence was committed in a completely different part of the country? If the summons, which is, presumably, sent recorded delivery, is not signed for will an arrest warrant still be issued for failure to turn up at court?
How would anyone know if they were not in the country when the NiP and the summons arrived? This has happened to someone close to me about 4 years ago and there has never been any follow-up to my knowledge. In that case the person named by the vehicle's keeper was working and living in France when the NiP and, possibly, the summons was sent, although the address in the UK was valid at the time the vehicle's keeper sent the NiP back. I know that as my company was the registered keeper. The driver went to France 3 weeks after the NiP to the keeper was returned with the UK address on it.
It seems as though the CPS/Old Bill only pursue arrest warrants as as result of non-appearance in court following a summons if the person to be arrested lives fairly locally and within the area covered by that police force. There was, I believe, a case in which a lady living in Scotland never received the summons sent to her home in the North of England as she had moved. She knew nothing of the NiP's or the summons until she was stopped in a routine check, arrested, and driven to Yorkshire for a court appearance where, IIRC, she was acquitted of failure to supply driver details under S172.
The question is, how likely is one to be arrested if one ignores all the correspondance from the Pratnerships/CPS when the offence was committed in a completely different part of the country? If the summons, which is, presumably, sent recorded delivery, is not signed for will an arrest warrant still be issued for failure to turn up at court?
How would anyone know if they were not in the country when the NiP and the summons arrived? This has happened to someone close to me about 4 years ago and there has never been any follow-up to my knowledge. In that case the person named by the vehicle's keeper was working and living in France when the NiP and, possibly, the summons was sent, although the address in the UK was valid at the time the vehicle's keeper sent the NiP back. I know that as my company was the registered keeper. The driver went to France 3 weeks after the NiP to the keeper was returned with the UK address on it.
Loose
In my days a Court that was going to disqualify a person made sure that person was summoned before them and given no option to plead G by letter. I now understand that this practice is not engrained in marble and hence the possibilities as outlined by Cooperman can exist i.e. disqualified, unaware and still driving. This is wrong in my opinion for obvious reasons.
Providing there is information in the wad of papers that arrived with the summons that you have been served with that you can plead by letter then you can do so providing letter reaches Court before Court date.
I am of the opinion that in that case the bench will debate the facts and if a disqualification is on the cards, then adjourn the case for sentence and send you a summons to appear personally.
dvd
In my days a Court that was going to disqualify a person made sure that person was summoned before them and given no option to plead G by letter. I now understand that this practice is not engrained in marble and hence the possibilities as outlined by Cooperman can exist i.e. disqualified, unaware and still driving. This is wrong in my opinion for obvious reasons.
Providing there is information in the wad of papers that arrived with the summons that you have been served with that you can plead by letter then you can do so providing letter reaches Court before Court date.
I am of the opinion that in that case the bench will debate the facts and if a disqualification is on the cards, then adjourn the case for sentence and send you a summons to appear personally.
dvd
Edited by Dwight Vandriver on Monday 24th July 16:08
Gassing Station | Speed, Plod & the Law | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff