Speed Cameras, Radars
&
The Law
PART I
This is a tale from my court
representation of a client who in a matter of two weeks during Christmas New
Year holiday period driving between the Snowy Mountain and Gold Coast, a
combined return journey distant of some 2,800 kilometers incurred seven (7)
separate speeding fines. The combined
demerit points of the seven fines were eighteen (18). A fully licensed driver with no demerit
points loses his or her license when the cumulative demerit points reach a
total of 12. When a period of three (3)
years elapses from the date of incurring first demerit points those points are
cancelled. At the time my client
incurred the 18 demerit points he had 6 points left on his license. The client was a businessman and being able
to personally drive is essential to the very survival of his business. The distance from Sydney to the Snowy
Mountains is some 500 kilometers one way.
The client incurred two radar speeding fines on the way up and one radar
speeding fine on the return journey.
Besides the monetary fine of some $830 plus the cumulative demerit
points losses off his license were 9.
The distance between Sydney and
the Gold Coast Queensland is some 900 kilometers each way. This time the client incurred five demerit point
one way and four demerit point the return journey. Those last four demerit points were incurred
one after the other less than 5 kilometers apart approaching the town of Taree . The client wanted to challenge each of the
seven fines and was adamant he wanted to retain his license! Goulburn, Murwillumbah, and Taree Local Courts
were the venue in which this Herculean legal challenge took place and all of
the client’s hope of retaining his license hung heavily on my shoulders. By necessity this challenge required lots of
planning, legal tactic, and luck.
After ‘administrative’ delays of
some 6 months the first two speeding fines incurred on the way to the Snowy Mountains Goulburn Local
Court . My
instructions in relation to the first fine were that another vehicle overtook
my client’s vehicle and the speeding fine should have been for that vehicle not
my client. After tender of the facts
sheet the prosecutor called the Constable to the witness box. I tested the Constable memory suggesting to
him that the car which was in fact speeding was a Subaru that had overtaken my
client’s vehicle. The Constable
disagreed. I put the same question in
the hypothetical and asked the Constable if in fact a Subaru had overtaken my
client’s vehicle it would be possible that my client’s vehicle would, as far as
the speeding camera concerned, appear as the speeding vehicle. The Constable said yes it would be possible! I put it to him that his hand held speeding
camera napped the wrong vehicle and he should have booked the Subaru instead of
my client’s vehicle. On balance the
Magistrate agreed with me! The client
escaped the first 3 demerit points! The
following week the other two speeding fines came for hearing. Having read about the hand held speeding
cameras in use by the NSW Police Force the maintenance section attracted my
attention especially the requirement and importance of calibration of these
cameras. This calibration must be done
every three months. The calibration must
also include calibration of tuning fork which is camera specific.
Each of the bookings was for a
speed in excess of 10 kilometers over the limit. In one booking the excess speed was 16
kilometers in the other 19 kilometers. I
asked the first Constable whether the speeding vehicle registering 116
kilometers could have been other vehicle than my client. ‘Definitely not’ was the reply. I asked the Constable about his familiarity and comfort with the
operation of the speed camera and whether the registered speed could be
erroneous. ‘Very familiar with the camera, attended course when the camera was
introduced’ was his reply. I asked him
when it was that the subject camera was last calibrated and whether he had the
calibration certificate. The Constable
looked bit uncomfortable and dug out from papers he had in his possession a calibration
certificate that stated the calibration was undertaken 5 months and 3 days
prior to my client’s booking. With full
smile the client gave me the thumb up and winked at me. I breathed a sigh of
relief. The client escaped another 3
demerit points. As luck will have it the
same line of questioning followed the Constable in charge of the speed camera
registering 19 kilometer over the limit.
When it came to the question of calibration that camera was in fact
calibrated within 3 months of the booking BUT the tuning fork was not
calibrated! A clean sweep! The client
escaped all 9 demerit points and as he told me with a big smile outside the
Court I still smell the fresh air of the Snowy Mountain.
If you think this client was
lucky wait for the next blog when we team up at Murwillumbah, and Taree Local
Courts.
………………………………
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