Jail warning for Traffic Warden
Discussion
BBC News said:
Jail warning for traffic warden
A traffic warden has been warned he could face prison for jabbing a motorist in the eye and then punching him.
David Jones, 40, was found guilty of assault causing actual bodily harm on businessman James Wardle.
Mr Wardle told Liverpool Magistrates' Court it was only because his eye was glass that he was not blinded in the assault.
Jones attacked Mr Wardle after he sounded his horn at him to warn him to move out of the way as he left a Liverpool car park in November 2002.
Jones swore at him and when Mr Wardle got out of his vehicle to remonstrate, jabbed him in his eye with the aerial of his walkie-talkie.
District Judge Victoria Rose adjourned sentencing until 19 February but warned Jones he could be jailed.
Mr Wardle told the court he gave a polite beep of his horn to warn of his presence as he left the car park and Jones turned around and mouthed abuse at him.
When Mr Wardle, who runs a sandwich shop in Liverpool city centre, got out of his car and asked Jones to repeat what he said, he was attacked, the court was told.
Jones repeated the obscenity and lashed out at him, poking him in the eye with the radio aerial, partially dislodging Mr Wardle's glass eye.
Mr Wardle, whose wife Maria and five-year-old son were in the car, claimed he tried to walk away, but Jones then punched him in the side of the face, knocking out a dental filling and leaving a bruise.
Mr Wardle of Knowsley Village told magistrates: "I felt disgusted. If it had been a person in the street it would have been bad, but for a traffic warden, I was amazed.
"He is lucky that it is a false eye because otherwise he could have blinded me."
Jones, from Aigburth, denied assaulting Mr Wardle, claiming he acted in self-defence after he drove his vehicle at him.
But District Judge Victoria Rose agreed that Jones' evidence was not credible, whereas Mr Wardle's was "compelling and convincing".
She added: "In my view it was the defendant who lost his temper.
"I do not accept that the car was driven at his legs.
"It was violence for violence's sake."
Jones was granted conditional bail and will be sentenced on February 19.
>>> Edited by Teppic on Friday 30th January 18:20
Sorry bin in pub.
Mrs Fish said:
Maybe this traffic warden had too many beeps? Like to know the real story.
I wouldn't care if every man and his dog beeped him, he shouldn't have done it. What if it was you that made the fatal beep?
Agree with you, just wondering what pushed him over the edge. Feeling cynical today as well.
Bodo said:
WTF does one with only one eye drive a car 
Bablefish dosen't seem to have an option of gibberish but I think you are asking why someone with only one eye was driving car? Please correct me if I'm wrong.
The answer is that you can drive a car with as many, or as few eyes as you want, as long as you can pass the required vision test. My aunt has a glass eye, hasn't stopped her from being a very reasonable, if cautious driver.
Mr2Mike said:gibberish?
WTF does one with only one eye drive a car
Bablefish dosen't seem to have an option of gibberish but I think you are asking why someone with only one eye was driving car? Please correct me if I'm wrong.
Please review your respect for other members. Yes, I was asking why somebody drives a car with restricted vision.
Mr2Mike said:That's the law. How does reality look like? Is vision with one eye as good as with two?
The answer is that you can drive a car with as many, or as few eyes as you want, as long as you can pass the required vision test.
I apologise if I insulted you, but I get fed up trying to read posts on forums that make no sense. Even worse are the kiddies that lk 2 spl in txt when they have a perfectly functional keyboard in front of them. Rant over.
Initialy accurate depth perception is difficult, but as with most disabilities of this type, the brain adapts very quickly. I'm sure people with one eye will always have a disadvantage, however slight over those of us with two. However, it seems that however many eyes drivers have, the majority fail to use them most of the time...
Initialy accurate depth perception is difficult, but as with most disabilities of this type, the brain adapts very quickly. I'm sure people with one eye will always have a disadvantage, however slight over those of us with two. However, it seems that however many eyes drivers have, the majority fail to use them most of the time...
Mr2Mike said:
I apologise if I insulted you, but I get fed up trying to read posts on forums that make no sense. Even worse are the kiddies that lk 2 spl in txt when they have a perfectly functional keyboard in front of them. Rant over.
Initialy accurate depth perception is difficult, but as with most disabilities of this type, the brain adapts very quickly. I'm sure people with one eye will always have a disadvantage, however slight over those of us with two. However, it seems that however many eyes drivers have, the majority fail to use them most of the time...
I have amblyopia and as a result I have almost monocular vision. However my eyesight and periperhal vision is far better than adequate to pass a driving test and I have only ever had 1 non fault accident in 300,000 miles of driving over 5 years and that was a guy ploughing into me from the side!
If you only see out of one eye for whatever reason and (even better) you were brought up like that then you learn to judge distance in a different way.
I have never gone into the back of anyone or severely misjudged a distance so I dont see a problem as long as you can see clearly and ARE able to judge distance.
HOWEVER what did disturb me is that my optician said I can pass a driving eyetest without glasses, which I can but for the benefit of my own safety I wear visual aids anyway as I want to be 110% while driving, same reason I never drive less than 12 hours after a night on the town!
I have seen a load of people that are really really really dangerous which I know to have perfect binocular vision but dont apply what they see and feel to the car therefore they are
kwits! http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/merseyside/3445979.stm
BBC said:
Attack warden spared jail term
A traffic warden who jabbed a motorist in the eye and then punched him has been spared jail by a judge.
David Jones, 40, was found guilty at Liverpool Magistrates Court last month of assault causing actual bodily harm.
He was sentenced to 240 hours community service, a two-month night-time home curfew order and ordered to pay £300 compensation to James Wardle.
Sentencing him, Deputy District Judge, Alan Jones, said he did not believe Jones was "by nature a violent person."
The court heard that Jones had attacked Mr Wardle after the latter sounded his horn at him to warn him to move out of the way as he left a Liverpool car park in November 2002.
'Could have blinded me'
Jones swore at him and when Mr Wardle got out of his vehicle to remonstrate, Jones jabbed him in his eye with the aerial of his walkie-talkie, partially dislodging Mr Wardle's glass eye.
Deputy District Judge, Alan Jones
Mr Wardle, whose wife Maria and five-year-old son were in the car, claimed he tried to walk away, but Jones then punched him in the side of the face, knocking out a dental filling and leaving a bruise.
Mr Wardle of Knowsley Village told magistrates: "I felt disgusted. If it had been a person in the street it would have been bad, but for a traffic warden, I was amazed.
"He is lucky that it is a false eye because otherwise he could have blinded me."
Sentencing Jones, Deputy district judge Alan Jones told him: "There is ample precedent for a court to use custody in a case like this, in which a person serving the public assaults one of those he is supposed to be serving.
"However it is the duty of the court to look at the individual circumstances of the case.
"You are not by nature a violent person. This must have been one of those classic moments of madness, hopefully one of those once in a lifetime events that will not happen again."
TonyOut said:
I still think the "it's a good job it's a glass eye, he could have blinded me" comment is a belter!
You're right. But realistically the TW didn't know the guy had a glass eye and it's only good fortune that he didn't blind him. Would that have resulted in prison?
I tend to agree that violence against those in authority should be dealt with severely, but equally I think violence BY those in authority should be similarly dealt with because of the trust that the public puts in them. In this case I'm not sure that community service really gets this message across.
Gassing Station | Speed, Plod & the Law | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff