If for instance, someone is being prosecuted for S172 only (unsigned) and the only evidence disclosed before hearing consists of:
- a copy of served NIP
- a statement by prosecution witness to the effect that 'NIP sent' and 'no satisfactory reply was received'
- a statement from a prosecution witness to the effect that 'the camera was working well on the day and did record the accused's car speeding a bit'
Would the accused be able to argue in court along these lines:
- the prosecution say 'no satisfactory reply received' without specifying why it was deemed unsatisfactory;
- the defendant has Post Office receipts proving that correspondence was sent (within required time etc);
- how can the Court know whether the reply that was sent was indeed unsatisfactory;
- if the prosecution seeks to introduce the returned S172 form as evidence can this be blocked by the defence on the grounds that it has not been disclosed at least 7 days before hearing
- defendant argues against any adjournment if requested by prosecution on the grounds that prosecution have had 3+ months to prepare their case and Bath is too far to travel, again
Is this a crap technical defence that's bound to fail?
Thanks for any comments
arthurdent