Thoughts?
A driver who injured a cyclist has pleaded guilty at Northampton Magistrates’ Court after footage which captured his reckless overtaking manoeuvre was submitted to Northamptonshire Police’s Operation Snap.
Paul Nigel Miley, 52, of Main Street in Ashby St Ledger, was recorded on a helmet camera driving without due care and attention as he drove past the group of riders near to the Northamptonshire village in December 2020.
The group had been riding along a single-track road when a Land Rover Defender drove towards them without slowing and forced its way past, causing one of the cyclists to fall off her bike.
The footage was uploaded to the Force’s Operation Snap online portal and when reviewed by police officers, the video proved beyond doubt that Miley had shown no consideration for other road users.
PC Mo Allsopp-Clarke of Northamptonshire Police’s Safer Roads Team said: “Miley initially pleaded not guilty to the offence, claiming he had driven extremely slowly past the group and was unable to move further across.
“The video evidence clearly showed that Miley had no consideration for the cyclists on that day, and when he appeared at Magistrates’ Court, he changed his plea to guilty.
“His driving fell below the standard of a competent and careful driver, which could have very easily ended in tragic consequences, and I’m pleased the courts have dealt with the driver positively.
“Drivers should always try to give cyclists and other vulnerable road users at least 1.5m of space and pass slowly. In this instance, on this road, that would not be possible.
“On this occasion, the correct thing to do would have been to come to a stop to allow the cyclists to pass safely. It takes a couple of seconds and then everyone can continue their journey in safety.”
Miley pleaded guilty when he appeared before magistrates on Friday, March 18 and received five points on his driving licence, fined £1,008 and ordered to pay £100 in costs and a £101 victim surcharge.
PC Allsopp-Clarke added: “The success of Operation Snap is down to the continued support from the public, who enable us to take action against driving offences we otherwise wouldn’t see.
“Hopefully this case demonstrates that we take all instances of poor driving very seriously and we will prosecute offenders accordingly, which can only be a good thing to help keep our roads safer.”
People can report driving offences by uploading video evidence via a simple online portal on the Force website and completing a form, which automatically creates a witness statement to provide a full account of the incident.
IMG_8745.MP4
