Michael Mason private prosecution

[benb]

The Cyclists' Defence Fund are seeking donations to help them bring a private prosecution against the driver involved in the death of Michael Mason.
Details here: https://www.justgiving.com/justiceformichael

 

[Spinney]

done

 

[GrumpyGregry]

Done. But....

Will this help address the woeful performance of the investigating officers from the Met who gave not a shoot.

 

[GrumpyGregry]

I don't know, but isn't there a saying about eating your elephant one bite at a time?

There is. And that is a very good point.

But this feels to me like two elephants, one to be hunted whilst the other, more senior in the herd, wanders off to do as it will....

 

[steveindenmark]

What a ridiculous decision.

It now means that during the hours of darkness motorists can run over any cyclist not wearing hi viz clothing or a helmet and get away with it.

Someone should tell them that we dont have to wear helmets or viz vests.

Michael Mason was abiding by all the laws and rules of the road and his family should not have to fight for justice.

 

[benb]

Agreed; it's an utter travesty.

 

[Pale Rider]

There is an old saying in the courts: "Justice delayed is justice denied."

The driver in this case, having been told no charges were to be brought, is facing a long wait with the threat of a possible trial hanging over them.

I note the appeal amount has been more than doubled, from £30K to £75K, which inevitably will mean further delay.

If there is to be a private prosecution, it should be launched sooner rather than later.

 

[jonny jeez]

There is an old saying in the courts: "Justice delayed is justice denied."

The driver in this case, having been told no charges were to be brought, is facing a long wait with the threat of a possible trial hanging over them.

I note the appeal amount has been more than doubled, from £30K to £75K, which inevitably will mean further delay.

If there is to be a private prosecution, it should be launched sooner rather than later.

Whilst I am.happy to support I was concerned about the increase in fees.

Is is usual for a legal team to engage without a full understanding of the complexity of the case.

A cynic might see that, as soon as the £30k target was hit, the legal team found the case to be more complex and suddenly requiring more than twice the originally agreed fees.

Has the complexity come about as the result of the CPS actions or lack of, would you know.(trying to play devils advocate here a bit)

 

[Pale Rider]

Whilst I am.happy to support I was concerned about the increase in fees.

Is is usual for a legal team to engage without a full understanding of the complexity of the case.

A cynic might see that, as soon as the £30k target was hit, the legal team found the case to be more complex and suddenly requiring more than twice the originally agreed fees.

Has the complexity come about as the result of the CPS actions or lack of, would you know.(trying to play devils advocate here a bit)

Private criminal prosecutions are rare in this country, so it is unlikely many of the legal team will have much - if any - experience of doing them.

Feeling their way through the job makes it harder to give an accurate pre-estimation of costs.

Looks to me as if this is a non-starter without significant new evidence.

Obtaining that won't be cheap since it will involve expert investigation, rather than just comment on what's already there.

I get the impression the family QC - Martin Porter - is personally backing the prosecution, so he may not be charging full price.

But if he does charge what some QCs do, running the trial could walk away with another £10K or more.

 

[benb]

This case is an indictment of the blatant disregard the Metropolitan Police has for cyclist deaths and injuries (as so often illustrated on this forum and elsewhere) and the attitude of the CPS.

To be fair, we can't criticise the CPS in this specific instance, as the case was never referred to them in the first place.

 

[benb]

The CPS were asked to call the case file in but refused to do so.

Oh right. I didn't know that was a thing. Cheers.

 

[Arrowfoot]

Whilst I am.happy to support I was concerned about the increase in fees.

Is is usual for a legal team to engage without a full understanding of the complexity of the case.

A cynic might see that, as soon as the £30k target was hit, the legal team found the case to be more complex and suddenly requiring more than twice the originally agreed fees.

Has the complexity come about as the result of the CPS actions or lack of, would you know.(trying to play devils advocate here a bit)

I would have expected them to explain the reason for the increase. As it was pointed out that the amount has more than doubled.

 

[jonny jeez]

The CPS were asked to call the case file in but refused to do so.

Worse I think...didn't they agree and then say they didn't

 

[jonny jeez]

No - the police said they'd sent the file and then had to admit they hadn't.

Ah, thanks

 

[glasgowcyclist]

The private prosecution is now going ahead, thanks to crowdfunding via the Cyclists' Defence Fund.

From the article:

"Gail Purcell, 58, is due to appear at Westminster magistrates’ court on September 6 to face charges of causing the death by careless driving of stand-in teacher Michael Mason, 70, in Regent Street in February 2014."​

GC