A sense of proportion

[Drago]

Have a read, and note the punishment the cyclist received for running a red.

That's fair enough, he broke the law and you know that of you get caught there will be consequences.

But then look at the fines people are receiving for actually assaulting someone.

https://www.northamptonchron.co.uk/...buckby-hartwell-brixworth-paulerspury-4618483

If you want to run a red and lessen any potential punishment then punch someone on the way through.

 

[toffee]

How did he get 3 points?

BRYAN KIIRU, aged 32, of Cecil Road, Northampton, rider of a bicycle who failed to comply with a red light traffic signal; fined £220, surcharge £88, costs £90, three points.

 

[Punkawallah]

How did he get 3 points?

BRYAN KIIRU, aged 32, of Cecil Road, Northampton, rider of a bicycle who failed to comply with a red light traffic signal; fined £220, surcharge £88, costs £90, three points.

Potted a green?

 

[Punkawallah]

Have a read, and note the punishment the cyclist received for running a red.

That's fair enough, he broke the law and you know that of you get caught there will be consequences.

But then look at the fines people are receiving for actually assaulting someone.

https://www.northamptonchron.co.uk/...buckby-hartwell-brixworth-paulerspury-4618483

If you want to run a red and lessen any potential punishment then punch someone on the way through.

Tell me about it. Woman kills a motorcyclist when driving on the wrong side of the road, 12 months ban. Man says nasty things to a celebrity, five years prison.

 

[a.twiddler]

3 points? For committing an offence while riding something for which no licence is required? Some mistake surely. Inaccurate reporting, was it actually a motorised vehicle, or had the offence been recorded in the wrong category. Perhaps the defendant needs to take legal advice.

 

[matticus]

3 points? For committing an offence while riding something for which no licence is required? Some mistake surely.

Nope.

 

[Sterlo]

Have a read, and note the punishment the cyclist received for running a red.

That's fair enough, he broke the law and you know that of you get caught there will be consequences.

But then look at the fines people are receiving for actually assaulting someone.

https://www.northamptonchron.co.uk/...buckby-hartwell-brixworth-paulerspury-4618483

If you want to run a red and lessen any potential punishment then punch someone on the way through.

...whilst smoking a joint!

 

[figbat]

Potted a green?

Scored a basket from outside the line?
Drop goal in the last minute?

 

[a.twiddler]

A quote from Cycling UK legal advice.

Cyclists can be penalised by a fixed-
penalty notice pursuant to sections 28 to 30
of the Road Traffic Act (RTA) 1988. The range
of such punishments will depend on the type
of offence (such as cycling on the pavement/
pedestrianised streets, jumping a red light,
etc) and the geographical location where the
offence has been committed. However, such
punishment would not be in the form of
penalty points on your driving licence but
rather a fine. The maximum penalty for
dangerous cycling is £2,500 and the
maximum penalty for careless cycling is
£1,000. Most fines involve more trivial
offences and are substantially less.
The courts do have a general power, under
the Criminal Courts Sentencing Act section
146(1), to disqualify a person from driving a
car for any offence, possibly including
offences committed on a bicycle. The courts
would need to have a ‘sufficient reason’ for
the disqualification, but if you commit a
traffic offence on a bicycle this might suffice.
Whilst the court does have such powers, it
seems unlikely they would resort to such an
approach when there may be more
appropriate sanctions available – such as a
fine or, in extreme cases, a prison sentence.
The latter occurred in the unusual and recent
case of R v Charles Alliston, widely covered
in the press, where a cyclist who killed a
pedestrian received an 18-month prison
sentence in a Young Offender Institution for
the offence of wanton or furious cycling.

(Richard Gaffney)
So, definitely something wrong there.

 

[ebikeerwidnes]

When I was a student in Nottingham I rode around a lot and knew a lot of other people who did the same thing

I was told to never ride around with my driving license on me and if I get stopped then never admit I have one
Even is asked I was advised (by other students so......) to say I don't have one - then if challenged later say I thought they meant have one with me NOW

Reason being that if they think you don;t have a driving license then you don;t get points - if they find you do have one then you can get points

Any legal experts (or similar!) know if this is true??

anyway - doesn;t make any sense!

 

[ebikeerwidnes]

On a less biased note - it might well depend on the circumstances of the offence

We all know that - based on many articles in the Daily Fail and other such rubbish newspapers - that ALL cyclists go through red lights all the time

Which makes me wonder why this particular cyclist was caught and prosecuted???
I suspect there were other circumstances but no charges were put forward - but the judge was aware of them and this made the punishment higher.
If there were several cyclists "done" on the same day then I would think it was a "campaign" but as there was only one then I suspect there was more to it!

 

[Brandane]

Any legal experts (or similar!) know if this is true??

Not a legal expert but have some working knowledge. Obviously a similar situation crops up when people get caught driving cars or other motor vehicles when they do not have a driving licence. In that case, the DVLA will create a driving record for them using their full name and date of birth to create a driver number. The points (or disqualification) will be recorded under that driver number, just the same way as it would if they had a proper licence. Presumably they will do the same for any cyclist who claims not to have a licence. Obviously points are of no consequence to the cyclist who never intends to drive, as a driving ban would be meaningless (and as yet there is no real practical way to enforce a cycling ban). The problem arises if they ever DO want to get a licence.

 

[Ajax Bay]

Have a read, and note the punishment the cyclist received for running a red.
That's fair enough, he broke the law and you know that of you get caught there will be consequences.
If you want to run a red and lessen any potential punishment then punch someone on the way through.

"BRYAN KIIRU, aged 32, of Cecil Road, Northampton, rider of a bicycle who failed to comply with a red light traffic signal; fined £220, surcharge £88, costs £90, three points."
Like the ebike bloke above, "I suspect there were other circumstances [described in court, which influenced the magistrates when determining sentence] but no charges were" taken to court.

 

[a.twiddler]

Not a legal expert but have some working knowledge. Obviously a similar situation crops up when people get caught driving cars or other motor vehicles when they do not have a driving licence. In that case, the DVLA will create a driving record for them using their full name and date of birth to create a driver number. The points (or disqualification) will be recorded under that driver number, just the same way as it would if they had a proper licence. Presumably they will do the same for any cyclist who claims not to have a licence. Obviously points are of no consequence to the cyclist who never intends to drive, as a driving ban would be meaningless (and as yet there is no real practical way to enforce a cycling ban). The problem arises if they ever DO want to get a licence.

But surely the whole issue here is that there is no system in law for awarding points to a cyclist? You could have a fixed penalty, fine, prison sentence, community service order or if the offence was grievous enough a ban from driving motor vehicles (if the offender had a licence for such a thing) but a court can't just "invent" points on a licence for a cyclist when the structure for it doesn't already exist. It stems from the archaic rights of pedestrians, horse riders and cyclists to be on the highway by right, and all other users to be there by licence.

 

[numbnuts]

Maybe AI should do the sentencing and not some out of date stuffy old fart at least it would be equal across the board.