Fines were still issued from my understanding, a few k's were shaved either way to drop a limit or to bring it back from loss of licence. Really no different to my old country days of the local copper dropping off .01 off a breatho reading etc. Honestly what this officer has done for what WE KNOW is nothing. How about the judge that let that black bastard off with nothing for breaking into an old womans house and beating her within an inch of death? How about the pedo's who have got off with nothing but a slap on the wrist? Seriously, what this police officer did has nothing on what people get away with these days.
There is no details available as to how many km's he shaved off. Based on that report and what you've just said there. So what you're assuming is that it was a small amount. What this officer for WHAT WE KNOW could have been taking off 20km's, who knows, I don't. Without stating how many km's have been taken off on various incidents, you cannot say with certainty what was or wasn't reasonable, you're making assumptions that the government is making a grab for cash. Yes our system is screwed up with incidents like you just said, but they have absolutely no relevance to this. Definitely could just be the governments desperate grab for more cash, but it could also be a matter of great negligence by the officer. Until it's played out in the courts, no one will know.
Basically they have screwed him for being kind. Its officers like that who make me actually want to follow the rules and be a safe driver. Instead there are so many pricks who pull P platers over just because they have nice cars. To hell with the damn system. Did you read the report RACV (pretty sure it was them) which showed that more accidents are caused from drivers not concentrating than drink driving, speed and fatigue COMBINED??? So basically doing 70 in a 60 zone but watching is safer than doing 60 but putting make up on, smoking, fiddling with the radio etc etc. The whole damn thing sucks. To that decent cop.... all cops should be like you. God i hope that fat bitch gets run over by someone doing the speed limit (but not paying attention). Argh **** like this makes me feel like we live in the US.
Compare this situation to another one: Motorist is seen smoking up his back wheels at a set of lights, then takes off. Is pulled over down the road and is looking at an immediate impound. Driver blows and indicates alcohol in his breath. Back at the station he blows well over and is off the road for six months. Exercising discretion, the police decide not to bother with the impound and improper use charges and issue a ticket for .05 disqualifying him from driving for six months. Can anyone see the difference? The above situation is a real one I have had before.
Local Omeo cop gave me a decent chance back in February 2005. I was heading from Canberra to Omeo with two mates, all three of us on our motorbikes, to meet up with a bunch of guys that rode up from Melbourne. After a REALLY long ride and being just 5km out of Omeo having come up the Omeo road for the first time it looked like it was going to rain any second. Hit a straight part and wound on the throttle when I saw the cop car round the bend ahead I looked down and the speedo was north of 140kph. His lights came on straight away so I just pulled over and waited for him. He was a nice bloke to talk to, told him where I'd come from and that I didn't want to get rained on after such a long ride - I still has a tent to setup too! He booked me for 110kph in a 100 zone. I was on my motobike P's at the time too... He told me not to wait while he did the ticket, just get to town at the speed limit so I didn't get wet and the ticket would be in the mail. Yes it sucks getting caught but with a cop like that, I honestly didn't mind as I rode away. I was putting nobody in danger except me. There were no cars around, the road was straight etc etc. He exercised discretion in that I had done someone wrong and needed to be fined for it but it wasn't worth losing my licence over! The decent cops out there know that the infraction system is wrong. Do something wrong ONCE in your life and it could mean you lose you licence. When people do a whole lot worse without being caught. But that's a seperate argument.
