Just saw a hit an run...kind of.

just a question mbk but could the police have impounded the car as evidance in an ongoing criminal investagation,

Originally Posted by davepreston

just a question mbk but could the police have impounded the car as evidance in an ongoing criminal investagation,

It would depend on lots of variables Dave, but generally we wouldn't unless it was a fatal or potentially fatal accident.

Isn't failing to stop an arrestable offence?

Failing to stop is but failing to stop at the scene of an accident and failing to report....not that I am aware of - although take that with a pinch of salt because power of arrest for offences is different here.

I thought arresting people was to prevent further crime being committed or because identity couldn't be verified. As long as the police are satisfied they know where someone lives and it's not something like murder (mudder in Scotland) they'll be round for you when they're ready.

WOW... I cant believe that. Honestly thats so out of order and its a shame theres people on the road who could do that...

Originally Posted by arenalife

I thought arresting people was to prevent further crime being committed or because identity couldn't be verified. As long as the police are satisfied they know where someone lives and it's not something like murder (mudder in Scotland) they'll be round for you when they're ready.

Kind of.....

Originally Posted by arenalife

Here's a disturbing story I remember from 2005.

Basically 4 different drivers hit the same person on a deserted road in the middle of the night (victim was drunk), they all drove off, each thinking they'd been the ones to kill him. One even took time to pull bits of him out of their car at the scene, now that's cold!

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/arti...run-times.html

That's proper sick that, ****s.

Since April 2006(ish, might be wrong, can't really remember) EVERYTHING is an "arrestable offence" but you have to be able to justify the arrest. So technically you can be arrested for failing to wear a seatbelt or littering. Arresting someone is the taking away of someone's liberty. It is an extreme power so we must not lose sight of the fact that what we are talking about here is a minor road traffic offence. Fortunately most people never have to witness/be involved in this sort of incident. But we're on a motorcycling forum though so thoughts/feelings about this subject will naturally be quite passionate and strong.

The reality is that this sort of event, whilst unfortunate, is not uncommon. Yes there are various offences commited by the driver, such as failing to stop, however the main offence of careless driving will take precedence and will "override" the other issues.

Someone mentioned the seizure of the vehicle. This will only happen if it is alleged that there was a mechanical defect with the vehicle which might have been a contributory factor in the collision. Nine times out of ten this is someone talking sh*t and claiming their brakes failed. Subsequently the vehicle is examined and found to have perfectly functioning brakes. In a serious (life changing or threatening injuries) or fatal collision all vehicles will be seized and examined by a police vehicle examiner.

Basically, a lot of the time it sucks and lets just hope it never happens to any of us, but you have to deal with the cold hard facts and circumstances and not what we all think/feel should happen as bikers.


PS, please appreciate the effort it took to type that after a curry, 5 pints and a rum & coke. I'm pretty confident there are no spelling/grammar mistakes though I have been typing for two hours. ;o)

A biker being involved means somebody is more likely to have been injured, but I don't think being bikers has anything to do with the strength of feeling. Show me any decent human being who wouldn't be disgusted by the example above of a pedestrian in wales being struck by 4 different cars. No motorbikes involved.

I don't know what happened to those drivers, but each one thought they had killed the pedestrian. Did they commit a minor offence? Failing to stop is not a minor traffic offence IMO, especially where the driver suspects someone has been injured.

If somebody knocked me off my motorbike, or ran me over in the street, unless the happen to be a paramedic, it wont make a lot of odds in most circumstances whether they stop or not, the damage to me is already done. If they drove off and somebody else turns up to help me, it makes no odds to me. They should still be bought to account on the basis of what it says about them.

What if it is the middle of the night on a quiet country road and you end up lying somewhere just out of sight critically injured and in pain, where over the next few hours you suffer a painful death. Has that hit and run driver committed a minor offence, or has he left another human being to die?

May sound dramatic, but forget cancer, the motor vehicle is the worlds biggest killer bar none, more people have died as a result of being in road accidents than anything else.