Common sense Bypass?

[gazza57]

Perhaps it's because I'm just getting old and whingy like Victor Meldrew but....

I was astonished to read recently that a bloke who carried out a citizens' arrest on a bloke who he had caught stealing from him, frog marched him to the police station, carrying a placard saying he was a thief, (which was true) and where they charged him resulting in some paltry fine, he then immediately takes legal action against this bloke and promptly wins £13000 in "damages" well it can't be for his reputation, he doesn't have one he's a thief.
Then the next day in the paper I read that the Crown Prosecution service has recommended taking a young woman to court for taking some ham and bread which had been thrown out of a local supermarket after a refrigeration unit had broken down.
Now one might imagine such a trivial offence even if it could be proven, would be dealt with by a magistrates court.... ahhhh no it's going to crown court where a judge, a recorder, three or four counsel and twelve jury will cost the tax payer perhaps £500,000 for £14 worth of discarded ham slices whilst a fine upstanding citizen who had the temerity to apprehend and arrest a thief has to endure paying him £13000.
This is the sort of head up the backside thinking which just lights me up are these lawmakers devoid of any common sense?
Gazza57:zx11:

[bricam1]

I could go on and on about this but I won't say anything other than. This country is mental and is geared to protecting the ones in the wrong.

:aargh4::aargh4::aargh4::aargh4::aargh4:

[Crasher]

Its not you gazza, we have lost the plot where common sense is concerned. A number of years ago I made a citizens arrest on two car thieves I saw breaking into a car and nearly got stabbed with a screwdriver for my trouble, well he did get me in the hand during the ensuing struggle. The agro I went through with Police paperwork and courts was just not worth the time and trouble and in the end one absconded and the other had the time tacked onto a sentence he was already serving by the time it came to court plus the sentence was pathetic anyway, just not worth the risk.

[Ben]

This was on radio 2 vine show the other day.

[phil miller]

i have always said its a sorry state when someone breaking the law can then claim damages
at college when i was 17 we were doing heath and safety at work, we were then told that if we laid a carpet up the stairs at home but didnt finish it that day, if someone broke in that night and tripped on the carpet and broke a leg they could then sue for damages, now IMHO they shouldnt be there so there shouldnt be a case!!!
this country makes me so mad at times:zx11:

[fat controller]

We had a cracker at my workplace the other night - scroat on the premises, complete with dog, threatening, abusing and attempting to assault a member of staff; police arrived, searched said scroat, found a knife on his person which they confiscated................. before escorting the scroat off the premises and letting him go!

Do 35mph in a 30 limit though, and you get a punishment pretty much instantly - no sense of balance at all.

[Crasher]

We have to lock all dangerous chemicals in a cupboard at night as if someone breaks in and hurts themselves, we would get taken to court, utter madness.:zx11:

[phil miller]

We had a cracker at my workplace the other night - scroat on the premises, complete with dog, threatening, abusing and attempting to assault a member of staff; police arrived, searched said scroat, found a knife on his person which they confiscated................. before escorting the scroat off the premises and letting him go!

Do 35mph in a 30 limit though, and you get a punishment pretty much instantly - no sense of balance at all.


We have to lock all dangerous chemicals in a cupboard at night as if someone breaks in and hurts themselves, we would get taken to court, utter madness.:zx11:

It is this that really really gets to me, we all work hard to have the things we want in life, yet some sad act can nick from you or gob off and they are protected, Crasher why is it you cant leave your stuff out, in my eyes if someone BROKE in and hurt themself they should get **** all and go inside and do time, the simple matter is they shouldnt be there in the first place
why cant the powers that be start protecting us rather than the scum that day time TV has produced

[DSG4ME]

i have always said its a sorry state when someone breaking the law can then claim damages
at college when i was 17 we were doing heath and safety at work, we were then told that if we laid a carpet up the stairs at home but didnt finish it that day, if someone broke in that night and tripped on the carpet and broke a leg they could then sue for damages, now IMHO they shouldnt be there so there shouldnt be a case!!!
this country makes me so mad at times:zx11:


Thats how it works in car insurance, no mot, no claim if you have a crash and you aren't at fault, simple rule is no mot = no driving = no crash, why it's different in ppl cases I have no idea, so all I can advise is if you should catch someone one night, make sure the gratification is gonna subdue the official punishment for using gratification, personally, if you allowed ppl to build a 9 ft high wall and electrify it, there shouldn't be a problem, at 9 ft high, nobody fell against the top of it did they.

[gazza57]

Its not you gazza, we have lost the plot where common sense is concerned. A number of years ago I made a citizens arrest on two car thieves I saw breaking into a car and nearly got stabbed with a screwdriver for my trouble, well he did get me in the hand during the ensuing struggle. The agro I went through with Police paperwork and courts was just not worth the time and trouble and in the end one absconded and the other had the time tacked onto a sentence he was already serving by the time it came to court plus the sentence was pathetic anyway, just not worth the risk.

I had a similar experience to you Crasher, a couple of years ago my next door neighbour who has a big mouth, had a frank exchange of views with another motorist culminating in him following my neighbour home where a further verbal exchange ensued.
Not content with that, this bloke comes back outside my house at 2am drunk and kicks off six door mirrors doing over £2500 worth of damage to six parked cars , one of which was mine.
Now as he kicks my mirror off, a local bobby is passing and witnesses this then promptly arrests him for criminal damage.
Now during the arrest he spits in the coppers face pouring a spume laden stream of vitriolic abuse whilst doing so before being dragged off in cuffs to cool off overnight in the cells.
The CPS did not proceed with charges against him for the criminal damage on five of the six cars because it was argued that the five damaged cars which the policeman didn't witness could all have parked adjacent to one another all with freshly damaged door mirrors by coincidence????????

The charges of assault against the policeman, and the public order offence were dropped due to "lack of evidence" despite several witnesses.
On the sixth, mine I was asked to submit an estimate for the cost of a replacement mirror which was £305 including a colour cued spray for the mirror cover.
The case was heard about six weeks later where he pled guilty to damaging my car. He was ordered to pay £75 compensation which didn't even cover my excess and to add insult to injury he paid it off at £5 a week which meant I did not even get the £75 until 3 months later.
It seems here in the UK, the more severe your offence or the need to collate evidence means you are much more likely to get your charges dropped, whereas the more minor offences are pursued to the nth degree of the law.
I have long since lost any faith in our justice system, it just fails on all counts to punish people to a level appropriate to the offence.

Gazza57

[Crasher]

Do 35mph in a 30 limit though, and you get a punishment pretty much instantly - no sense of balance at all.

That is of course unless you are DRIVING the speed camera van. I have just followed (in heavy rain) a speed camera van out of a SPECS camera controlled 40 stretch into a 30 (where there are crossings to the tram stop). I dropped down to 30 and he just kept on going at 40. He then stopped outside Radford Road police station and double parked, blocking the road. One rule for them, another for us-hypocrisy!

[gazza57]

That is of course unless you are DRIVING the speed camera van. I have just followed (in heavy rain) a speed camera van out of a SPECS camera controlled 40 stretch into a 30 (where there are crossings to the tram stop). I dropped down to 30 and he just kept on going at 40. He then stopped outside Radford Road police station and double parked, blocking the road. One rule for them, another for us-hypocrisy!


Unfortunately Crasher,
It is just that, police vehicles are exempt under statute from all restrictions on the highway, so they are able to park on double yellows, overtake on double whites, park on zigzags, in fact anyhting they like.
If you watch traffic cops, you see how many times lone police drivers are seen driving and holding a RT handset, often holding it in one hand and using the other hand between steering and changing gear, something for which you or I would be fined and endorsed.
They argue that police drivers are highly trained which is true, but using a handheld comms device impairs attention span and has nothing to do with skill or training.
But they are Teflon coated.
Gazza57

[gazza57]

Delete this

[fat controller]

That is of course unless you are DRIVING the speed camera van. I have just followed (in heavy rain) a speed camera van out of a SPECS camera controlled 40 stretch into a 30 (where there are crossings to the tram stop). I dropped down to 30 and he just kept on going at 40. He then stopped outside Radford Road police station and double parked, blocking the road. One rule for them, another for us-hypocrisy!


But of course! They couldn't be seen to be leading by example now, could they?

[JimC64]

OMGG.....+1 on ALL of the previous posts here on thsi subject!!!!:zx11:

Sometimes I think I'm losing my mind, but, really its the establishment losing theirs!!

I was watching roadwars earlier tonight and some total scroats in a stolen car, racing around, running from the police, of course breakinga bout at least 3 dozen other traffic violations in the process.

They get something like a 6 month suspended sentence, £200 fine and banned for 6 months.

Normal everyday drivers get caught in the totting up procedure, arrive at 12 points and get a similar or heavier fine and banned for a year. This obviously causes hardship in their jpb / lifestyle etc etc but generally, they are law abiding citizens and it matters not.....UNBELIEVABLE:zx11::zx11:

Had a situation a few years back where there was a local youth causing damage to my property and I promptly got hold of him, slightly roughly some would say;)
Anyhow I got a warning from the police about such behaviour and that he could press charges if he decided to?????
He did'nt, but makes you think.

This country has gone to pot, big time.

We gotta get tough and get tough NOW!!

[fat controller]

You're right Jim - sadly, those that are in the positions to actually change things so we can get tough are generally too far detached from reality to even notice that there is a problem :(

[gazza57]

Nothing surprises me Jim,

You'd think you were the criminal not them, if you had decided to gie 'im a severe malkying you would have just been treated as a bonus collar, one for criminal damage, the other for assault and I bet you'd have got the tougher penalty!

Gazza57

[JimC64]

Nothing surprises me Jim,

You'd think you were the criminal not them, if you had decided to gie 'im a severe malkying you would have just been treated as a bonus collar, one for criminal damage, the other for assault and I bet you'd have got the tougher penalty!

Gazza57

Now this is what I'm talking about and IMO is the way it should be........an eye for an eye a tooth for a tooth!
DO YOURSELF A FAVOUR AND READ IT......WHO SAYS THERE ISN'T JUSTICE?

14020

It'd certainly make them think twice.
As it is now they know they're likley to get a slap on the wrist

If that had happened over here, there would have been several arrests, hours and hoursa of police work, notes, court time, judges and some goos soldiers reputations probably tarnished, maybe even dishonourable discharges and the like. Thats before we talk about the ££££££££ cost to the public.

IMO what was meted out was deserved.

[fat controller]

Love it! :biglaugh: