The sad result of ignoring flood warnings.

[old man emu]

A couple of days ago, a family was travelling on a back road. The road was affected by flooding waterways. The driver, wanting to reach the end of their long journey, drove into a flooded water course. The car got washed off the road, but the tragedy was that their 5-year-old couldn't get out of his child seat, where he was later found, drowned.

 

I harken back to my days as when I was in the Accident Investigation Squad. It saddens me to say that I would have to add to this family's distress because, at Law, the driver was responsible for the death of the child, as surely as if the driver had been as full as a boot and as high as a kite. As a servant of the Law, I would be bound to put the driver before the Court, and I would expect a finding of Guilt. At least the Court would have the power to take into consideration the lifetime punishment the driver was suffering, and go easy with the actual sentence.

 

Sometimes a policeman's lot is not a happy one.

[facthunter]

No, you have to deal with a lot of "difficult" people but some  law abiding people get treated rather badly by the system. Giving someone "their "DAY in Court" is costly and doesn't guarantee Justice . (Only LAW).  Only successful Criminals can afford TOP Lawyers. Nev

[old man emu]

Often times, especially when the collision has happened on rural roads, the person you have to charge is a really decent person. But on the other side of the coin, the person killed or maimed for life is likely to be  decent person, too. Or worse, a family member of the driver.

 

Decent people are decent because they are truly remorseful for the results of their actions. The Courts take that into consideration. How do we treat the elderly person who failed to identify another vehicle coming from the side, and as a result of the collision they lose their Life's partner?

 

One of the old proofs of "dangerous driving", which is one of the elements to be proved by the Crown, is what was called 'momentary inattention'. Look down at your instrument panel while driving into a collision, and you are driving dangerously.

[facthunter]

Intent or gross negligence should be part of it.  There's plenty of Rude and thoughtless driving about. Plenty doing "Way over " the limit not just a couple of Kms. A colour code should be used on the edge as well as a sign. I believe that's done in the UK. Sleepy drivers. You see them wandering now and again.  Nev

[red750]

One of tne main problems is that people do not look far enough ahead. Therir attention is fixed on the front of the bonnet. I don't know if it stems from my flying training, where you keep your eye out for other traffic, but I often see obstacles or situations way before the driver. Just  today I glimpsed a flashig light about 5-600 metres ahead. mentioned it to the driver who took a few seconds to see it. As it turned out, it was on the back of a garbage truck, but could have been any other emergency vehicle. The same goes for cars parked in the kerbside lane.

 

Watching Surveillence Australia: Dashcam. A couple driving along in their 4wd, when a car parked on the side of the road pulled out and did a U-turn in front of them without signalling. The driver of the turning car obviously did not check for traffic. Bam! T-bone. Another car driving along merrily, approaching a green light. All of a sudden a car in the cross street moves forward against the red. I saw it in time to have stopped, but the driver of the car with the cam did not. Bam! T-bone.