Close call

JohnC6 · 17 Feb 2022

Here in Gloucestershire .This drink/driver..probably drunk driver,got 9 months in prison but only a 12 month ban. No-one was injured.

Gloucestershire: Lucky escape for family as drunk driver flips car into oncoming traffic

33-year-old Patrick Williams received a nine-month sentence and had his license suspended for 12 months.

news.sky.com

Jelster · 17 Feb 2022

Unfortunately, drink driving seems to be coming socially acceptable again, after years of it not. Personally if I have the car, I stay totally teetotal, and I just can't think of why anyone else wouldn't. Punishments for drink driving should be made much heavier. At the moment it's a minimum 12 month ban, I'd like to see that at least doubled.

And then we have those driving after taking drugs...

Garry Edwards · 17 Feb 2022

Jelster said:
Unfortunately, drink driving seems to be coming socially acceptable again, after years of it not. Personally if I have the car, I stay totally teetotal, and I just can't think of why anyone else wouldn't. Punishments for drink driving should be made much heavier. At the moment it's a minimum 12 month ban, I'd like to see that at least doubled.

And then we have those driving after taking drugs...

Not helped when people such as Katie Price get caught drunk and disqualified driving repeatedly but manage to avoid prison.

I don't personally see her as any kind of (positive) role model but many do,

andya700 · 18 Feb 2022

Garry Edwards said:
Not helped when people such as Katie Price get caught drunk and disqualified driving repeatedly but manage to avoid prison.

I don't personally see her as any kind of (positive) role model but many do,

I find it hard to believe that someone with her record is not banned for life. Double standards again for the famous (notorious), rich and powerful.

Katie Price - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

Harriet Harmon got away with this. I don't think any of us would.

Anger as Harriet Harman escapes driving ban for mobile phone crash

Harriet Harman faced acute political embarrassment today as she was accused of getting off lightly for crashing her car while using a mobile phone.

www.standard.co.uk

JohnC6 · 18 Feb 2022

Often the so-called celebrities hire the expensive services of Mr Loophole..Nick Freeman. You could say the fault lies with the law not being tight enough so he doesn't find loopholes. https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/ar...egal-master-avoiding-driving-convictions.html

The lack of traffic police must have a bearing on the rise of drink/drive offences and not just because less of them are being caught but possibly because those who take the chance know the likelihood of being stopped are pretty slim. Unlike speed cameras which still have a deterrent to catch drink/drivers it needs a good presence of road policing.

Garry Edwards · 18 Feb 2022

andya700 said:
I find it hard to believe that someone with her record is not banned for life. Double standards again for the famous (notorious), rich and powerful.

Katie Price - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

Harriet Harmon got away with this. I don't think any of us would.

Anger as Harriet Harman escapes driving ban for mobile phone crash

Harriet Harman faced acute political embarrassment today as she was accused of getting off lightly for crashing her car while using a mobile phone.

www.standard.co.uk

I'm not defending Harriet Harman, but I don't think that there's any real comparison between her driving without due care and attention and drunk driving.
Also, that report came from the Evening Standard, which is extremely right-wing.

Also, Magistrates are entitled to use their discretion (within limits) when sentencing and sometimes we don't agree with them.