Police Officer Jailed for Trying to Dodge Speeding Ticket - by Swapping Car Number Plates

Anthony Rees-Thompson a police officer, who tried to dodge a speeding ticket faces being sacked and losing more than £100,000 in pension rights.

The cheating police officer has been jailed for three months for swapping his car number plates in order to dodge a £60 speeding ticket. He also faces being sacked and losing more than £100,000 in pension rights.

A court heard the undercover detective fitted the new registration plates to avoid a fine and three points on his license.
Rees-Thompson then wrote to the speed camera unit saying there had been a technical error or another similar car was using the same registration number.

The father-of-four sent in photographs of his silver Vauxhall Corsa with new plates, bought for £21 online.

Speed camera officials compared the photographs and noticed the plates had the same digits but the new ones had been customised with a blue GB sign and the Welsh flag.

But the court heard Rees-Thompson forgot that his car was being filmed every day as he drove it into police headquarters in Bridgend – and his force’s own HQ CCTV was used to catch him.

Prosecutor Meirion Davies said: “He chose to cheat the legal process with a deliberate deception.
“He fitted different plates and took photographs to deliberately mislead those who were investigating the speeding offence.”

Rees-Thompson had denied perverting the course of justice claiming he changed the plates because they were damaged. If he had paid the fixed penalty notice after being caught on a speed camera doing 35mph in a 30mph zone it would have cost him just £60.

Jonathan Elystan Rees, defending, asked for him to receive a suspended prison sentence to avoid being attacked in prison.  “He has served 11 years as a police officer of an impeccable record. As a former serving police officer he can be expected to be a risk in all sorts of ways while serving in custody – threats to his mental and also his physical wellbeing.”

Jailing him for three months at Newport Crown Court, Judge David Wynn Morgan told Rees-Thompson: “This type of offence strikes at the heart of the criminal justice system. The purpose of the points system is those who drive badly get punished and it discourages bad driving. The system depends on the honest completion of the relevant forms and the dishonest completion of forms is all to easy to do.

“Yours wasn’t a panic reaction – it was a carefully considered and thought out course of action. The alteration of this vehicles appearance and correspondence that went with it was a calculated demonstration of your bare-faced dishonesty and arrogant belief that you could get away with it. Nevertheless, this is a tragedy. You have lost your employment, your reputation and because your self esteem is evidently based on your occupation and profession you obviously have suffered a huge blow.”

He will now lose his job in the covert management department of South Wales Police and his pension rights.

As he was taken down, Judge Morgan told the prison officers: “Police officers are not to escape offences of this nature.

“But I do ask that all appropriate precautions are taken for his safety in custody.”
Anthony-Rees Thompson will now face a “fast track” disciplinary hearing.

Speaking after the case, Tim Jones, Head of Professional Standards at South Wales Police, said: “We note the sentencing of Detective Constable Anthony Rees-Thompson and the decision of the court today.

“DC Rees-Thompson will now be subject to a fast track gross misconduct process chaired by the Chief Constable.

“South Wales Police Anti-Corruption unit fully investigated the fraudulent activities of DC Rees-Thompson which led to his conviction.

“We expect the highest standards of professional conduct from all members of staff, and will not tolerate individuals who undermine the committed public service of their professional colleagues.”

1000s Of Drivers Could Have Speeding Prosecutions Reversed

Thousands of motorists may have their speeding tickets revoked as a result of incorrectly spaced road markings. The markings form part of the process that enables some speed cameras to measure the speed of a vehicle.

David Erasmus received a speeding ticket and noticed that the white road markings relating to the camera which caught him looked too close together.

When he went and measured their distance apart he discovered that they were in fact three inches shorter than they should be, this meant that the speed camera would have clocked him going faster than he actually was. It was alleged that he was speeding at 36mph through a 30mph area.

Erasmus, a former engineer from Hendy in west Wales challenged the markings at Llanelli Magistrates' Court - they formally dismissed the case.

GoSafe, who are responsible for speed camera enforcement in Wales, commented: "The camera and secondary check marks on the A4138 has been fully type approved by the Home Office and the secondary check marks in particular, meet the required tolerance. The outcome of the case is a matter for the Magistrates Courts, however, we are keen to understand the circumstances and will review the case in due course."

The court's decision will of course give the opportunity to those who have been prosecuted, maybe even banned, as a result of the camera in question, to have their cases reopened.

It will also most probably open the floodgates to thousands of others who have been caught by speed cameras across the UK.

I can imagine whole armies of people taking to the roads this weekend to measure the road markings of a camera that caught them - ironically an action that may prove to be a lot more dangerous than speeding past the camera.

Police Beg Villagers to Stop Clocking Speeding Drivers - Because They're Creating too Much Paperwork

Police have asked villagers in Ticknall, Derbyshire, armed with a speed gun to stop clocking drivers breaking the law - because they can't cope with the paperwork.

Residents were given the gun by officers to catch speeding motorists who break the 30mph limit through their village. 

So far the volunteers have carried out 10 speeding operations on the A514 main road through the village clocking a total of around 200 motorists. Police have told the group its operations are netting so many motorists they can't cope - so they'll have to stop clocking speeding drivers.

They have announced a new crackdown in the area as part of a new road safety scheme  - and told them they can stand down.

Drivers caught by the speed gun are sent warning letters from force saying they have breached the limit and if they do it again they risk prosecution. (The drivers are given allowed 6mph leeway over the limit). 

A Derbyshire Police spokesman said: 'Community speedwatch events are an extremely valuable resource of information for us, as they help to illustrate the volume of speeding in certain areas.

'This allows us to focus our efforts on areas that we know are a problem or could become one.

The A514 through Ticknall has been identified as one of 100 roads across the county that we will be focusing on over the coming year, and that is partly down to the work of local residents carrying out the speed watches.

'However, the watches do result in increased workload for police staff, as every driver seen speeding receives a letter and this has to be processed. That is why we ask residents to be reasonable with the frequency and length of time spent recording details.'

 

Giant Semi-Truck Jums Over a Speeding Formula 1 Car

Why jump a giant semi-truck over a speeding Formula 1 car? If you're EMC and Lotus F1 Team, it's a unique way to demonstrate how we "Redefine Motorsports," bringing the power of EMC technology to the Lotus F1 Team—and setting a world record in the process!

Motorbike Rider Busted for Speeding & Wheelie by Mounted Police in Central London

Have you ever had a mounted policeman stop you for speeding (ok it was also because the guy pulled a wheelie) Anyway I digress. I think it was only this guys manners that meant that the policeman did not cease the camera for evidence, he knew what he saw!

Having said that it would have been hard to calibrate the horses speedo to give chase! ;)

Can Losing White Lines Cut Speeding

There are some trusted methods to slow speeding drivers such as Speed cameras and sleeping policemen, they are also however controversial, with speed cameras often regarded as a stealth tax while sleeping policemen can damage the drivers car.

There is a new suggestion to encourage motorists to stick within the speed limit – the removal of white lines from the centre of urban roads – could prove the most controversial yet.

Transport for London (TfL) studied the effects of road design on driver behaviour and although the widely held view is that street signs and road markings maintain road safety by providing drivers with timely guidance to aid decision-making and reduce uncertainty, there is mounting evidence to suggest there are too many visual intrusions at the road side and this is adding to driver confusion.

Transport for London as part of the review removed road signs and road markings along three of its routes to assess the impact a less cluttered roadside has on driver behaviour, the results of this are not evident yet but another of their studies has already revealed a drop in vehicle speeds along the routes which had road marking removed.

Seven Sisters Road in north London, for instance, saw southbound traffic speed drop by almost 13%, from an average of 32.4mph to 28.3mph.

It is believed that the removal of white lines takes drivers out of their comfort zone as ‘their’ side of the road is no longer clearly defined and so they can’t be confident that oncoming traffic won’t encroach. In turn, this uncertainty makes motorists concentrate more on their driving and speed and is an effective way to make sure they stick within the speed limit.

Decisions on whether to remove white lines will be left to individual local authorities and won’t be considered roads on where markings are used to highlight particular hazards, such as on approaches to complex junctions.

Speed Camera Loophole Spotted by Welsh Driver?

Ive come across this news story "Speed Camera Loophole Spotted by Welsh Driver" which is circulating the internet at the minute, because it seemed to me to be something that probably was not accurate I have done a search and information like this has been circulating the internet since at least 2003.

Extract from The Western Mail

Magistrates' courts could grind to a halt if thousands of motorists exploit a legal loophole unwittingly exposed by a Welsh driver. 

Magistrates had no choice but to find Phillip Dennis, of Whitford, Flintshire, not guilty of speeding when his case was heard on Thursday.

He had omitted to sign the standard form which is sent to the owner of each vehicle caught by a speed camera - and Mold magistrates said they couldn't accept the form as evidence.

Police have no power to compel car owners to sign the form and have been expecting someone to spot the loophole.

Yesterday the Association of British Drivers, representing about 2,500 motorists, predicted drivers would soon get wind of the court case. 

"Motorists are always very quick to seek any way to avoid paying for their speeding ticket, particularly when they've been caught by cameras because they resent very much the way the cameras operate," said spokesman Tony Vickers 

"The cameras have very much reduced public respect for the police and local authorities.

"People are only too glad to find a way to beat the system." 

He said motorists who receive a speeding ticket after being caught on camera could opt to have their case heard in court, rather than pay the fine without quibble.

"If a lot of people take up this option it will have another side-effect, which will be to clog up the magistrates' courts with hundreds or thousands of motorists all trying to avoid paying the fine. 

"The implications for the legal system are interesting, to say the least."

Although the ABD did not condone breaking the highway laws, it said it would place details of the loophole on its own website for other drivers to read.

"I'm sure a lot of people will try it on and see whether it gets them anywhere."

The prospect of using the loophole could look especially appealing to people who already had endorsements on their licences, said Mr Vickers.

I also came across this from "stu675" on http://www.675.cc/675/viewtopic.php?f=33&t=23283  which I think tells the real truth of the matter:

"A guy from Aldershot, whose name I can't remember, took this as far as the European Court and lost - about 6 or 7 years ago. The argument revolved around self-incrimination, as signing the form was, and is, taken by the Police, CPS and the courtd, as an admission of guilt. You can't be forced to do that. It was absolutely cast-iron, as far as I and many others were concerned but the system had too much to lose, so the case never stood a chance of success. So, if you don't sign, you will get charged with failure to provide information and you may get done for speeding as well."

So it looks like they will find a way to get you but possibly on a different charge, be wary if you think you might try see if not signing the form works!

FATAL 4 Operation Catches 42 Motorists

The FATAL4 ‘clinics’ are designed to reinforce concerns about 

• speeding
• using mobile phones behind the wheel
• not wearing seatbelts
• drink driving. 

On Friday, October 17, officers positioned themselves on the A6 Leicester Road for the latest FATAL4 operation. Some were plain clothes  officers who would radio ahead to uniformed officers to stop people in the checkpoint area

A 42 offences were recorded in total:

• 23 drivers using mobile phones
• 16 not wearing a seatbelt 
• 2 with no insurance
• 1 drink driving arrest.

Sergeant Simon Blincow said
“FATAL4 is an ongoing national operation to try and tackle the main four things that kill people on the roads.We want to influence and educate people because we see the other side of it. We go to the fatal collisions and see the bodies, we deal with the relatives, we see the tragic repercussions, that’s why we are so serious about trying to stop it.”

 

Bristol Speed Cameras to be Switched Back on

Four Bristol based speed cameras are to be switched back on for the first time in three years after being switched off in 2011. The locations are as follows:

• A4018 Westbury Road, north off Brecon Road;
• A4174 junction of Airport Road and Creswicke Road;
• A4174 junction of Hartcliffe Way and Novers Lane;
• B3122 St John’s Lane west of Littleton Road.

There are 52 static cameras remaining across the region that might also eventually be reactivated. Bristol City Council says:

"We are taking a staged approach to the switch on of cameras which will not mean that all sites are switched on at the same time. We do not have a date for switching on the cameras at these sites as we are still working with partners and suppliers to ensure all necessary procedures and permissions are in place."

Jeremy Clarkson Gets Points on Driving Licence For Speeding

Image: Evening Standard on Twitter

Writing in his weekly Sun newspaper column Clarkson has revealed that he was caught by a camera when he was driving too fast between Whitby and London, he also added that he was driving too speedily to be offered the option of taking a speed awareness course.

He said: “Last month I wrote in a blind fury about how many speed cameras I’d encountered on a drive from Whitby to London. Well, it seems one of them got to me. Sadly, I was going too quickly for the speed awareness course to be an option. Which means I’m getting some points on my licence. My first in 30 years.”

Clarkson who is one of the BBC’s highest paid presenters, was strongly criticised in 2008 for claiming to have driven 186mph on a public road, adding: “The speed limit’s annoying for people who have a job to do.”

This latest news comes just weeks after Clarkson and his fellow Top Gear presenters Richard Hammond and James May sparked protests in Argentina while filming the Top Gear Christmas special, after being accused of deliberately driving a Porsche with the registration number H982 FKL, which locals suggested referred to the Falklands conflict of 1982. The presenters, were forced to abandon filming by outraged people, the show maintain that they bought the car – complete with the number plate – in the UK because it was the best available vehicle of its type and the number plate had not been considered.

Jailed: Minicab Driver Who Said He Had Sold Car & Constantly Lied to Avoid Speeding Fines

Image Credit manchestereveningnews.co.uk

Mohammed Khawaja a 60-year-old from Oldham claimed he had sold his Ford Focus car to a fictitious person, a Mr Mohammed Saleem – but was spotted driving it by a licensing officer. That was the final nail in the coffin when combined with a host full of other evidence provided by the satellite tracking system in Khawaja’s taxi and the fact that he was found to be paying monthly insurance installments on the car.

The minicab driver who tried to avoid 5 speeding fines in total (between June and December 2013) by inventing another motorist has been jailed for 8 months by Manchester Crown Court.

He pleaded guilty to five counts of perverting the course of justice (for the 5 speeding fines) and one of providing false information (for producing a falsified a registration document).

It is highly unlikely that he will ever drive a minicab again

New Mexico Hopes 'Singing Road' Stops Drivers Speeding

New Mexico transportation officials are hoping a "singing road" along historic Route 66 will curb speeding.

Tigress Productions is creating the road between Albuquerque and the mountain community of Tijeras for a new National Geographic Channel series dubbed "Crowd Control" that will debut in November.

The road uses a series of rumble strips to create music. The driver will hear the tune as long as the speed limit is obeyed.

There are only a few such "singing roads" in the world.

Aside from getting drivers to slow down, state Transportation Secretary Tom Church says the rumble strips will keep drowsy drivers from falling asleep at the wheel.

He says the goal of the experiment is to change driver behaviour in a fun way by giving them a reward for obeying the speed limit.

The video below is of a different singing road but will show you how they work

Luckiest Cyclist Ever!

Some people miss signs on the road, perhaps if this was in England it would be flagged up as a blackspot on one of our Snoopers and the lorry driver would have been more aware of the intersection than he appeared to be here

Do You Know of Any Speed Bumps WORSE Than These Ones?

Get a load of the video of people attempting to make their way over this set ov viscious speed bumps.  Do you have something similar or WORSE near where you live or on your journey to work?

Video Below

Would 'Selfie Traffic Signs' Stop You Speeding

Authorities in Antwerp, Belgium, are inviting people to upload a selfie on their website and become a traffic sign - as a way to deter drivers from speeding.

Belgium already uses a system of "smiley" road signs to tell motorists whether they are speeding or not. But now, citizens are invited to upload two photos of themselves, one with a happy face and another with a disapproving glare - to be flashed at errant motorists, the Belgian website Flanders News reported. As part of a joint awareness scheme by the city of Antwerp and the police, the photos will be displayed on interactive speedometers installed across the city.

There has been huge public support for efforts to tackle speeding on Belgium's roads. In April, tens of thousands of people responded to a call for ideas on where to place speed cameras ahead of a marathon speed crackdown by police. Campaigners say 300 people die in Belgium every year because of speeding.

Speeding Drivers Paid in Excess of 182 Million Euro So Far

Spanish government released information revealing that speeding drivers in Spain have handed over a total of 182,595,550.86 euro in fines so far this year.

Madrid has racked in the most at a total of more than 20 million euro, followed by Sevilla in second place netting 10 million, whereas in third place is Valencia where drivers have handed over 9.8 million euro.

In regional terms, Castilla y León leads the way with a total of 22,101,431 euro, Madrid is in second place with 20,517,316 euro, and Valencia once again makes it to third place with 20,164,577, combining the provinces of Valencia, Castellon and Alicante.

The data was collated between the 1st of January and the 14th of July, but as the traffic department embark on a new campaign to tackle speeding this week, it can only increase, unless drivers choose to drive within the restraints of the law on mass of course.

Surrey Traffic Police List 'top' Excuses for Speeding

Surrey Police have heard some "weird and wonderful" excuses for speeding including Nagging wives and toilet dashes,

one driver even said his wife had run off with a police officer and he was trying to flee from the police car in case the officer was returning her. (ive seen that on an image somewhere on pinterest im sure)

Another said they had to find a toilet after eating "dodgy fried chicken".

One driver that decided that honesty was the best policy and went with "I was trying to get away from the cops."

And another motorist who was stopped for traveling at 130mph said: "My passenger has drunk too much and I don't want her being sick in the car."

Traffic police disclosed the most absurd excuses as part of a road safety campaign targeting speeding in Surrey. They added "Although these excuses might seem amusing, the simple truth is speed kills." Insp Mallett said: "It is heart-breaking to see the impact on families when we have to tell them that a loved one has been killed or hurt. There is no excuse for speeding and there is no excuse for trying to shirk responsibility for your actions."

The road safety campaign is being carried out as part of the county's Drive Smart campaign which was launched in 2009 after residents highlighted anti-social driving as a major concern.

Check for Impending Speeding Convictions

I was really excited this morning to come across in a forum that it was possible to "Check for impending speeding convictions" and a link to http://www.i-database.co.uk/. After a second, taking a step back to reality I decided that this had to be a hoax, a quick google later my suspicions were confirmed by several sources

The website has been around for some time but has started being advertised via email again recently


Graham Walker on http://www.roadtrafficlaw.com  "If a website such as this was proposed it would breach a number of very basic privacy laws and data protection, as well as completely bypass the administrative system in place for NIP." I think the bit that made me laugh the most was " if you were to try your own registration plate then the website will happily generate a speeding ticket for you in a part of the country which you may never of visited before. Put in your postcode and the website will tell you that your own HOUSE was speeding on the A93 from Perth to Aberdeen 10 days ago." So obviously I had to give it a go.......

Indeed the random plate that I entered had been speeding, near where I live - which im assuming was based on my ip of my computer.  In short i-database is great site for sending to people as a laugh in the office but definitely not to be taken seriously. If you have been caught speeding in real life the only way to find out is to wait and see if a notification drops through your door within 14 days.

Speed Limit For Lorries on Single Carriageways to be Raised to 50 mph

Speed limit for lorries on single carriageway roads will be raised to 50 mph. This change will remove a 20 mph difference between lorry and car speed limits cutting dangerous overtaking and bringing permitted lorry speeds into line with other large vehicles like coaches and caravans.

Image: Taina Sohlman / Shutterstock.com

Transport Minister Claire Perry has announced the the government is raising the speed limit for lorries on single carriageway roads to 50 mph, as part of a package of measures to cut congestion, reduce dangerous overtaking and help get the country moving. This move mean that hauliers across England and Wales could see a £11 million a year boost.

Currently heavy goods vehicles over 7.5 tonnes are currently stuck at 40 mph on single carriageway roads a speed limit which was set way back in the 1960s and its at odds with other large vehicles on our roads. The government has also today (24 July 2014) launched a 6 week consultation on plans to  increase the speed limits for HGVs on dual carriageways from 50 mph to 60 mph.

The change in speed limits for HGVs on single carriageways will come into force in early 2015 and will bring England and Wales in line with other European road safety leaders, such as Denmark and Norway. Depending on the consultation responses, the increase for dual carriageways will come in at the same time. The existing limits continue to apply until the change has been put into effect.

Guy Jumps Over Speeding Lamborghini

Baby Born After 100mph Dash on M275

A baby has been delivered in Portsmouth on the hard shoulder of a motorway after her grandfather was stopped driving at 100mph (160km/h).

After her contractions had started Tiffany Ellmore was being rushed along the M275 by her father Colin on the night of Friday 13th June 2014.

Police surrounded the car in order to allow Mr Ellmore to deliver her baby named Lola Mia Rose.

Lola was taken to the Queen Alexandra Hospital weighing a "healthy" 6lb 4oz (2.8kg). Police said no action would be taken over the speeding.

Source BBC