The Decision to Prosecute

Trials Court last week and a lady charged with failing to comply with a red traffic light.
Two police constables claimed that she’d failed to stop when the lights were clearly at red, something she strenuously denied. She’d been offered a Fixed Penalty, £60 and 3 points on her licence, but had chosen to come to court and argue her case before us.

We did wonder why she was risking a large fine, paying for a solicitor and the payment of court costs if found guilty, when she had a clean licence and the 3 points would be no great hardship.

The two police officers gave their evidence and it was only under cross examination that it transpired that one of them was an officer under training, specifically in the issuing of Fixed Penalty Notices, and that he had a certain quota to reach in order to qualify.

We had no evidence to support a suspicion that a lone lady driver had been deliberately targeted in order that the requisite number of tickets could be issued that day, but we were sufficiently impressed with the quality and clarity of her evidence, and her apparent sincerity, to acquit her and order that her legal costs be met from Public Funds.

I’m sure the fact that she was black had no bearing on the decision to prosecute her.