Guest GhostHunter Posted September 12, 2008 Share Posted September 12, 2008 A friend of mine was stopped by the police by in May for having a headlight that wasn't working properly (only the side light was on).. Anyway, charged and received a VREC (?) to get it fixed, and a fixed ?30 penalty...both the vrec and the penalty were paid, yet yesterday, they receive a citation to appear at court in a couple of weeks.... Here's the issue though - whilst the dodgy headlight wasn't a problem, i.e offence admitted, and requisite repair carried out - the citation included the witless (sic) statement from the Police Officers... In it, when I read it over, a couple of things stood out... 1. They have the car registration number wrong on the citation, and 2. The witless statement goes into detail how the friend was stopped for having a faulty rear BRAKE LIGHT, and as such contravening blah blah blah....the incorrect registration number is also noted in the witless statement. Now, the offending headlight was repaired by a garage, who stamped the receipt, which was in turn returned to the Police station as per the "producer" given... So, my question is - given the witless statement and the citation contain false and inaccurate information, how is best to proceed ? They surely cant reissue a citation after having incorrectly sent out the one my friend has ? Would this instantly be thrown out of court and a refund of the fine issued ? Ta Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Meadows Posted September 12, 2008 Share Posted September 12, 2008 I had a similiarly annoying fixed penalty sppeding charge. It stated that i was doing 30mph in a 42 mph limit...how did i plead? I pointed out the anomaly by letter and stated 'guilty' to doing 30mph in a 42 mph area!!! Not only did i get ?60 fine & 3 points,when my licence came back it had the date of conviction as May 03 and date of offence as Oct 03!!! This was in Luton so was'nt worth the hassle and expense of being smarter than them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest GhostHunter Posted September 12, 2008 Share Posted September 12, 2008 I had a similiarly annoying fixed penalty sppeding charge.It stated that i was doing 30mph in a 42 mph limit...how did i plead? I pointed out the anomaly by letter and stated 'guilty' to doing 30mph in a 42 mph area!!! Not only did i get ?60 fine & 3 points,when my licence came back it had the date of conviction as May 03 and date of offence as Oct 03!!! This was in Luton so was'nt worth the hassle and expense of being smarter than them. I think my friend feels aggrieved at pleading guilty to something that is factually incorrect ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
upthehill Posted September 12, 2008 Share Posted September 12, 2008 It's a good example of why people should not be quick to accept a spot fine/points, as often our keystone cops are to incompetent to successfully prosecute. If they do manage to put a decent case together you still end up with a fine/points. But it's so common that they don't. I sat out a speeding charge once, didn't accept the fixed penalty the offered and they just could not organise themselves to get me to court within the time limit. I'm not advocating speeding, I'm merely advocating only accepting a prosecution if they can prepare a case against you without messing up the basics that a work experience laddie should be able to sort out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davemclaren Posted September 12, 2008 Share Posted September 12, 2008 I think my friend feels aggrieved at pleading guilty to something that is factually incorrect ! I love these 'friend of mine' threads. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chester copperpot Posted September 12, 2008 Share Posted September 12, 2008 I love these 'friend of mine' threads. Lol Just what I was thinking. My pals got itchy baws, and has been with a *******, any ideas. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coppercrutch Posted September 12, 2008 Share Posted September 12, 2008 A friend of mine was stopped by the police by in May for having a headlight that wasn't working properly (only the side light was on).. Anyway, charged and received a VREC (?) to get it fixed, and a fixed ?30 penalty...both the vrec and the penalty were paid, yet yesterday, they receive a citation to appear at court in a couple of weeks.... Here's the issue though - whilst the dodgy headlight wasn't a problem, i.e offence admitted, and requisite repair carried out - the citation included the witless (sic) statement from the Police Officers... In it, when I read it over, a couple of things stood out... 1. They have the car registration number wrong on the citation, and 2. The witless statement goes into detail how the friend was stopped for having a faulty rear BRAKE LIGHT, and as such contravening blah blah blah....the incorrect registration number is also noted in the witless statement. Now, the offending headlight was repaired by a garage, who stamped the receipt, which was in turn returned to the Police station as per the "producer" given... So, my question is - given the witless statement and the citation contain false and inaccurate information, how is best to proceed ? They surely cant reissue a citation after having incorrectly sent out the one my friend has ? Would this instantly be thrown out of court and a refund of the fine issued ? Ta I have zero Legal clue. However people have got off far more serious offences due to the search warrant having an incorrect date on it etc.. If I got any fine that had anything wrong on it I would be writing back, pointing the error out and demanding they pull it. Why not !! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigC Posted September 12, 2008 Share Posted September 12, 2008 A wee letter similar to this would do the trick: Dear Plods. You've messed up. I have proof. If you really want to embarass yourselves in court, then please go ahead and be my guest. I will take great pleasure in the judges scathing attack on your officers for being incompetent.... Or you could just cancel the fine and the points? I'm Easy. Yours Sincerely Dexter's Mate Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest GhostHunter Posted September 12, 2008 Share Posted September 12, 2008 A wee letter similar to this would do the trick: Dear Plods. You've messed up. I have proof. If you really want to embarass yourselves in court, then please go ahead and be my guest. I will take great pleasure in the judges scathing attack on your officers for being incompetent.... Or you could just cancel the fine and the points? I'm Easy. Yours Sincerely Dexter's Mate | Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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