Quad bike girl, and woman 4x4 driver blamed at the time...
Quad bike girl, and woman 4x4 driver blamed at the time...
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Discussion

chris watton

Original Poster:

22,547 posts

290 months

Wednesday 23rd July 2008
quotequote all
Remember a while ago, all the UK press and media were trying to pin the blame on the poor woman (She was driving a Land Rover - must be guilty etc)

Seems the father's been charged with his daughter's manslaughter!

Taken from - http://news.uk.msn.com/Article.aspx?cp-documentid=... :

The father of a seven-year-old girl who died when the quad bike she was riding was in a head-on crash in a country lane has been charged with manslaughter by gross neglect, lawyers said.

Elizabeth Cooke was riding behind a Range Rover driven by her father Gary, 46, when the accident happened near the family home in Blackmore, Essex, at around 7pm on Boxing Day last year, police said.

Her machine was in collision with another Range Rover travelling in the opposite direction.

Crown Prosecution Service sources said Mr Cooke would appear before magistrates in Grays, Essex, on July 31.

Post-mortem tests showed that Elizabeth, who died in hospital, suffered multiple injuries.

Her father was arrested in January and released on bail while police investigated "all the circumstances" of the incident.

He was charged after reporting to a police station and released on bail pending his court

Taita

8,001 posts

233 months

Wednesday 23rd July 2008
quotequote all
Eh?

robinhood21

31,147 posts

262 months

Wednesday 23rd July 2008
quotequote all
A terrible tragedy.
I can understand the father being charged with manslaughter, but think that penalising him further a waste of time. He has already paid the price.

Dupont666

22,925 posts

222 months

Wednesday 23rd July 2008
quotequote all
Taita said:
Eh?
believe that was the 2 kids riding around at dusk time following their father on a road with no lights or safety gear and another car comes the other way and takes one out and they go ape with the other driver.... Even tho they shouldnt have been on the road at all and they were too young to ride on the road and they were purely recreational un road worthy quads (read not road legal)... and it went on and on!!

its was the correct decision but not the best result as the father has already lost a kid and now gets charged for this as well...

chris watton

Original Poster:

22,547 posts

290 months

Wednesday 23rd July 2008
quotequote all
Dupont666 said:
Taita said:
Eh?
believe that was the 2 kids riding around at dusk time following their father on a road with no lights or safety gear and another car comes the other way and takes one out and they go ape with the other driver.... Even tho they shouldnt have been on the road at all and they were too young to ride on the road and they were purely recreational un road worthy quads (read not road legal)... and it went on and on!!

its was the correct decision but not the best result as the father has already lost a kid and now gets charged for this as well...
Yes, I am sorry, I did need to explain the background a little better, but I was rushed because I was called for tea! boxedin

IIRC, the media pointed the blame at the woman driver, taking great delight (seemingly) in describing the type of car she drove and perhaps, subliminally, hinting that anyone who drives a 4x4 must be guilty.

In all honesty, I don't know what to think of the father being charged, his children trusted him, and it's not something I'd ever allow my kid's to do, as they trust unconditionally, so that should make you even more aware of potential dangers.

spikeyhead

20,490 posts

227 months

Wednesday 23rd July 2008
quotequote all
robinhood21 said:
A terrible tragedy.
I can understand the father being charged with manslaughter, but think that penalising him further a waste of time. He has already paid the price.
Whether he's guilty and what punishment he should get is for a court to decide.

The police gather the evidence.
The CPS decide whether to prosecute.
The jury decide if he's guilty.
The Judge decides the punishment.

pgilc1

40,169 posts

227 months

Wednesday 23rd July 2008
quotequote all
robinhood21 said:
A terrible tragedy.
I can understand the father being charged with manslaughter, but think that penalising him further a waste of time. He has already paid the price.
A terrible tragedy but totally avoidable.

Plus are we saying that if one of your children dies as a result of your gross negligence, then you should suffer no punishment?

King Herald

23,501 posts

246 months

Wednesday 23rd July 2008
quotequote all
pgilc1 said:
robinhood21 said:
A terrible tragedy.
I can understand the father being charged with manslaughter, but think that penalising him further a waste of time. He has already paid the price.
A terrible tragedy but totally avoidable.

Plus are we saying that if one of your children dies as a result of your gross negligence, then you should suffer no punishment?
I won't even let my 7 year old daughter cross the road on her own, let alone ride a quad, at night on a main road, behind my car!!!!!!!!! yikesyikes

Mave

8,217 posts

245 months

Wednesday 23rd July 2008
quotequote all
spikeyhead said:
robinhood21 said:
A terrible tragedy.
I can understand the father being charged with manslaughter, but think that penalising him further a waste of time. He has already paid the price.
Whether he's guilty and what punishment he should get is for a court to decide.

The police gather the evidence.
The CPS decide whether to prosecute.
The jury decide if he's guilty.
The Judge decides the punishment.
Doesn't mean someone can have an opinion on it...

spikeyhead

20,490 posts

227 months

Wednesday 23rd July 2008
quotequote all
Mave said:
spikeyhead said:
robinhood21 said:
A terrible tragedy.
I can understand the father being charged with manslaughter, but think that penalising him further a waste of time. He has already paid the price.
Whether he's guilty and what punishment he should get is for a court to decide.

The police gather the evidence.
The CPS decide whether to prosecute.
The jury decide if he's guilty.
The Judge decides the punishment.
Doesn't mean someone can have an opinion on it...
Am I not allowed to state some facts on how the British legal system works?

I didn't disagree with his opinion in my post, merely stated how the law would be applied.

I do think that a decent custodial sentence is valid.

pgilc1

40,169 posts

227 months

Wednesday 23rd July 2008
quotequote all
spikeyhead said:
Mave said:
spikeyhead said:
robinhood21 said:
A terrible tragedy.
I can understand the father being charged with manslaughter, but think that penalising him further a waste of time. He has already paid the price.
Whether he's guilty and what punishment he should get is for a court to decide.

The police gather the evidence.
The CPS decide whether to prosecute.
The jury decide if he's guilty.
The Judge decides the punishment.
Doesn't mean someone can have an opinion on it...
Am I not allowed to state some facts on how the British legal system works?

I didn't disagree with his opinion in my post, merely stated how the law would be applied.

I do think that a decent custodial sentence is valid.
+1

King Herald

23,501 posts

246 months

Thursday 24th July 2008
quotequote all
Taita said:
Eh?
You been living in a cave, didn't hear this splattered all over the news and PH a few months back? confused

Mrs Fish

30,018 posts

288 months

Thursday 24th July 2008
quotequote all
So did he swerve to miss the other range rover then but the daughter didn't? confused

Mrs Fish

30,018 posts

288 months

Thursday 24th July 2008
quotequote all
King Herald said:
Taita said:
Eh?
You been living in a cave, didn't hear this splattered all over the news and PH a few months back? confused
I didn't hear about it paperbag

voyds9

8,490 posts

313 months

Thursday 24th July 2008
quotequote all
Mrs Fish said:
So did he swerve to miss the other range rover then but the daughter didn't? confused
iirc the father was that far infront the eldest daughter who was the lead quad biker couldn't see his tail lights.

WildCat

8,369 posts

273 months

Thursday 24th July 2008
quotequote all
Recently the Papa who crashed into a river .. ..in a Land Rover ... which resulted in his four youngest children drowning.. has been charged with "causing death by dangerous driving". CPS say they did not take the decision lightly - because the Papa devastated by the loss of the children.

I suppose the decision to prosecute this man was not taken lightly either.

But there ist a difference in the two cases.. the Landy driver was participating in some kind of Landy jolly at the time und his fellows claim his driving was not "untoward as such" - but the weather conditions were dire. Perhaps he failed to take this into account with fullest concentration scratchchin In which case - a court has to hear all the circumstances leading to the tragedy und how far the driver's acts caused the tragedy.

In this case.. the bloke allowed two young children to ride these bikes along a dark road with no lights or any other safety provision. I do not think there was much other option open other than to initiate a case to answer here.

Of the two cases - side by side - though.. I would think rough justice if the Landy driver end up in jail - but perhaps fair enough if the Quadf bike Papa receive a short custodial or a longer - but suspended term - as outcome. frown ;(

WildCat

8,369 posts

273 months

Thursday 24th July 2008
quotequote all
voyds9 said:
Mrs Fish said:
So did he swerve to miss the other range rover then but the daughter didn't? confused
iirc the father was that far infront the eldest daughter who was the lead quad biker couldn't see his tail lights.
Narrow-ish but busy road. This incident apparently occurred at a bend as well. The Papa had driven around this bend.. und the lady in the other car - as alleged in the press report after the facts began to emerge - says the girl apparently moved towards the middle of road perhaps looking to see her Papa's lights.. scratchchin

Unfortunately, the lady in the 4x4 said the girl just moved out into her path .. she had not one chance of avoiding her on a blind bend like that. She would not be expecting someone to be so silly as to give into such pester power - even if Christmas-time. (Because .. these were Christmas presents.. I suspect there was a fair amount of "pester power" which the Papa caved in to. .. rolleyes)


All parents know or should know that children get very, very excited with new Christmas toys.. but even so.. common sense should have dictated a nono und tantrums as result of sheer excitement of "nice new presents" are to be diffused in such a way that parents WIN ...such as a compromise with promise of some other occasion to ride these toys in daylight.

Edited by WildCat on Thursday 24th July 08:03

G Man

4,053 posts

290 months

Thursday 24th July 2008
quotequote all
I think banging up the Dad is a meaningless punishment, 20-30 years ago this country would not bother.
The father has sentenced himself to a life sentence of remorse and regret and daily trials and tribulation about his actions.

If you the state thinks it can beat that sentence bang him up in overcrowded prisons and let some rapist and pedo's out.

IMHO the state seems to want to blame and punish for any untimely death, we have forgotten that life is dangerous we are human and we make mistakes.
This fool has made one of the biggest ....

And I don't want to pay my hard earnt to bang him up, when he will sentence himself to a far worse punishment and probably top himself 5 years down the line

Jasandjules

72,614 posts

259 months

Thursday 24th July 2008
quotequote all
I don't think anyone wins in this situation.

zeb

3,292 posts

248 months

Thursday 24th July 2008
quotequote all
I think the guy will be in his own sort of prison for the rest of his life.

charging him with manslaughter merely underlines it