errors in witness statement plus wrong address Options

[tonyLC]

hi all, be gentle , this is my first post.
basically i have received a single justice procedure notice ,
posted to me on 10.12.18 for an offence on 14.10.18.

rr84211 , exceed 40mph speed limit.

firstly the letter was sent to the wrong address,,,,,, number 34 when i live at 32.

secondly i was on the a20 at the sidcup hospital junc travelling into london, this is a 50mph limit.

on the witness statement ( the police officer who pulled me over) it states i was travelling south,
it goes on to say he used a PRO LASER 4 handheld speed detection device,
and it states he" sighted my vehicle in the heads up display by aiming the laser at my vehicle, it displayed a speed of 7mph ( yes 7 mph) and i was 154 metres away"
however on the reverse of the statement it does continue with a summary and it does state 71mph reported speed.

what do you all think ,,,,,,

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[Jlc]

The wrong address doesn't give you a defence against the allegation.

Should you want to contest the alleged speed then the officer can attend and will apologise for his typo and confirm it was 71mph.

And the offence is exceeding the prescribed limit - it is important to get the limit correct as this is used for sentencing. If it was a 50mph limit then you would have been eligible for a fixed penalty.

This post has been edited by Jlc: Mon, 17 Dec 2018 - 11:28

[The Rookie]

As you received the SJPN the address error while not good isnt going to help you, although you should notify the court of the error to make sure you get the further communications.

The last bit is easily explained typo, you can call the officer in order to challenge his statement and he will explain that and I don't see the bench disagreeing that he recorded you at 71mph.

The Speed limit is far more critical as it effects sentencing. Just to clarify, are you saying where you were seen speeding is a 50mph limit or where it says you were speeding is a 50mph limit but is the wrong location? If it was 71 in a 50 you should have received a fixed penalty, or were you driving something restricted to 40mph (which I didn't think anything was in England now) regardless of the posted limit?

[tonyLC]

i was doing 71 in a 50 when i was caught on laser by the officer sitting in a stationary vehicle.

[tonyLC]

hopefully the pics will explain.

Attached thumbnail(s)

 

[Unzippy]

The cop agrees it was a 50 limit - in your second pic.

[Jlc]

It appears to be 50mph from GSV.

You could submit a guilty plea (assuming you are pleading guilty) via SJPN and ask them to sentence ask a fixed penalty equivalent sentence. (3 points £100)

Alternatively, you can simply ask for the matter to be heard at court (you don't have to use Single Justice Procedure as this is a postal procedure only). You could then plead guilty and it is likely they'll accept it being a 50mph limit and sentence accordingly (asking for FP equivalent sentencing again). Normal sentencing would see 66% of weekly relevant earnings, costs of £85 and surcharge of 10% of the fine (min £30).

Was a fixed penalty ever made available do you know?

[The Rookie]

You need to get onto the relevant highway authority for the TRO creating the limit and also get a video showing your approach to where you were caught confirming the signage, while you can put the Police to strict proof of the limit it helps to have your own evidence.

The well known (and amusing) Martin v Harrow Crown Court is a useful reference once you stop laughing.
http://www.bailii.org/cgi-bin/markup.cgi?d.../2007/3193.html

For info the 'Recorder Bristoe' is almost certainly the infamous 'ugly' Constance Briscoe as she was a recorder in Harrow at that time, but that's slightly circumstantial proof even if it neatly fits with her known personality.

[roythebus]

If the OP was travelling towards London on the A20 then he couldn't have been travelling south as the A20 runs SE/NW at that point. Travelling "south" would mean travelling AWAY from London.

The 50 limit starts before the big junction and goes up the hill towards the garden centre where it drops to 40, all clearly signposted. I use that route quite a lot. where it drops to 40 ther's also a number of yellow money boxes along there. The cop's evidence is contrary, either the OP exceeded a 40 limit or he exceeded a 50 limit. what is it to be Mr.Plod? Get your facts right. While you may be trained in the use of the device you're not very good at knowing where you are or what direction you are facing..

Having looked at the GSV picture, that shows the 2 lane road which heads OUT of London, south easterly direction. The 50 limit commences about a mile before that. the London bound road is 3 lanes going up hill.

This post has been edited by roythebus: Tue, 18 Dec 2018 - 09:57

[cp8759]

Well there's nothing to be lost in asking for the video at this point. The charge is pants, The London Traffic (40 m.p.h. Speed Limit) (No.1) Regulations 1959 are not a local order, it appears to be an SI, I couldn't find a copy online but they appear to have been amended by The North Circular Trunk Road (A406) and A1400 Trunk Road (Waltham Forest and Redbridge) (Speed Limits) Order 1993, however the highways authority can also amend or revoke the regulations by making a local order (The London Borough of Harrow has certainly done so for roads within its jurisdiction).

It's not impossible that, in spite of the name, the 1959 regulations now impose a 50 mph limit on that stretch of road, but it's for the prosecution to come up with an up to date copy of the order. I would suggest the OP obtains his own copy from the highway authority.

[bearclaw]

The well known (and amusing) Martin v Harrow Crown Court is a useful reference once you stop laughing.
http://www.bailii.org/cgi-bin/markup.cgi?d.../2007/3193.html

That is comedy gold... whatever was in the tapwater that day...?