What happens to maniac drivers?

[GmanUK65]

Ive noticed in some of the threads about cyclists having accidents or being killed due to careless drivers. What happens to these drivers, do they just get a slap on the wrist, or is it something serious?

 

[jarlrmai]

For those that actually come to court a jury of their peers decides, they all drive as well.

Have a look at the Helen Measures case.

 

[Pro Tour Punditry]

I've never seen a jury pass sentence. Nor do most court cases involve juries. So a fairly useless reply.

 

[robrich]

I've never seen a jury pass sentence. Nor do most court cases involve juries. So a fairly useless reply.

Just like yours?

 

[Pro Tour Punditry]

Just like yours?

Mine has use in that it highlights the uselessness of the previous reply.

 

[robrich]

Motoring offences involving death are mostly going to be held in a crown court with guilt decided by a jury. Sentencing will be another matter dealt with by the judge. That is in cases of death by dangerous driving or careless driving whilst influenced of drink/drugs. Other offences can be heard at either magistrates or crown. A lot of these though will be contested and so will end up at crown for trial by jury.

 

[Roadrider48]

Usually nothing!

 

[glenn forger]

One in three convicted killer drivers escapes ajail sentence despite taking lives and devastating those of their victims' families


Yesterday, Steve Barclay MP launched a campaign to help a family in his constituency whose son Jamie had been tragically killed. The killer-driver was doing TWICE the speed limit, had several previous convictions, and he showed no remorse.

Read More
Despite this, with good behaviour he will be out of prison in less than two years. The #JusticeForJamie campaign launched yesterday, and it has already been backed by The Daily Mail, The Sun, The Telegraph, ITV Daybreak, and many other MPs in Parliament. Steve Barclay MP said: “Parliament increased the maximum sentence from 10 to 14 years in 2004, reflecting the seriousness of the offence. However, this has never been used, and one in three of those convicted escape jail altogether.” “The fact tough penalties are not being used shows that the will of Parliament is being ignored. Judges say they are constrained by guidelines which prevent them from handing out longer sentences. That’s why I’ve launched this campaign with Conservative Voice, at www.StopDangerousDrivers.com to call for a change in this guidance.”

 

[Cycleops]

I've never seen a jury pass sentence. Nor do most court cases involve juries. So a fairly useless reply.

Who said the jury passes sentence?

 

[Pro Tour Punditry]

For those that actually come to court a jury of their peers decides, they all drive as well.

Who said the jury passes sentence?

The question in the OP is "What happens to maniac driver?" The jury does not decide what happens. And there are very few cases where a jury is involved. The reply was useless. @robrich has provided a decent reply, so I'll leave it at that.

 

[jarlrmai]

In order for a sentence to be passed a jury has to decide upon guilt often it seems they decide there is no guilt.

 

[50000tears]

I do wonder sometimes when these deaths do end up in front of a jury as to whether the jury are already predisposed towards the driver. Especially if they are seen as a normal hard working member of society. Even my wife who is of course married to a keen cyclist and cycles herself on occasion, has some blinkered ideas about where a cyclist should or shouldn't be, and has a very car bias view especially if a cyclist dares to be on the road when a cycling path is available.

When juries are put together they are questioned, or so I believe, to make sure that they would be impartial in their decision making. But many I think would hold prejudices, even if only sub conscious ones against the cyclist. Think of it this way, the court would never allow a jury of 12 avid cyclists to stand in a case where a cyclist died after being hit by a car but I bet many cases are sat with 12 jury members who all drive but don't also cycle.

 

[robrich]

Steve Barclay MP said: “Parliament increased the maximum sentence from 10 to 14 years in 2004, reflecting the seriousness of the offence. However, this has never been used, and one in three of those convicted escape jail altogether.””

What offence is being spoken about here? I've had a look at the webpage but can't see what offence the campaign is being directed at. Death by dangerous, death whilst under influence or any RTA offence that results in a death?
Rightly or wrongly, it is very rare (except for murder and even then it's unusual to get a whole life tariff) for the full available sentence to be imposed by a court.
Also, Steve Barclay does use rather emotive language in saying 'escape' jail. A term of imprisonment is only one of a whole variety of options open to courts in sentencing.
IMO it does not help the debate to use emotive terms around sentencing such as 'walked out of court' 'got away scot free' 'still at liberty'. A person may not be imprisoned, but they do get a punishment for the crime and that can include some control over their liberty without imprisonment. Whether that is suitable is open for debate as Steve Barclay has started.
Please don't get me wrong, I'm no bleeding heart liberal for any person that causes the death of another, but I know that not everything is as black and white as our minds would like it to be.

 

[GmanUK65]

I saw a thread that was written earlier than this thread and only seen it because I was checking to see if this one had any replies. It has a link to a newspaper clipping about a driver who killed a cyclist head-on while overtaking another car and was sentenced to only 20 weeks

The thread is titled 'Almost hit head on at roughly 65mph'

 

[Crankarm]

What offence is being spoken about here? I've had a look at the webpage but can't see what offence the campaign is being directed at. Death by dangerous, death whilst under influence or any RTA offence that results in a death?
Rightly or wrongly, it is very rare (except for murder and even then it's unusual to get a whole life tariff) for the full available sentence to be imposed by a court.
Also, Steve Barclay does use rather emotive language in saying 'escape' jail. A term of imprisonment is only one of a whole variety of options open to courts in sentencing.
IMO it does not help the debate to use emotive terms around sentencing such as 'walked out of court' 'got away scot free' 'still at liberty'. A person may not be imprisoned, but they do get a punishment for the crime and that can include some control over their liberty without imprisonment. Whether that is suitable is open for debate as Steve Barclay has started.
Please don't get me wrong, I'm no bleeding heart liberal for any person that causes the death of another, but I know that not everything is as black and white as our minds would like it to be.

Well one things for certain the criminal justice system is totally f****d up when it comes to apprehending and punishing drivers who seriously injure or kill other road users in particular vulnerable road users such as cyclists and pedestrians. Too many are not being caught because of lazy or incompetent plods, if drivers are caught they are not being charged or too lenient charges are brought because of incompetent feable CPS lawyers, and if a conviction is secured the sentencing is frankly insulting to the family of the victim whose husband, wife, son, daughter, mum or dad may have been killed by the scrote defendant. Never once AFAIK has a judge imposed a full tariff even for the most egregious driving, never! It really is a f*****g sad state of affairs. The reason why so many get off or don't go to prison is because many jury members are car drivers and petrol heads themselves and the other is that the prisons are full so it is a policy decision to avoid or make prison sentences as short as possible as otherwise giving long maximum sentences would quickly fill up the prisons even more costing a lot more money to the Government which they don't want. So on the one hand you have them saying they have increased the theoretical tariff of death by driving offences to 14 years or what ever to try to appease us, but behind the scenes there are policy decisions to the courts quite to the contrary to avoid sending the convicted to prison at all, consider other more lenient sentences with lower costs and if a court feels compelled to send some to jail to make it as short a stay as possible! And as for open prisons …….