Senior Police Officer let off drink/drive charge

[duckonin]

Are the Police and the courts seperate identities???

It would appear they are but the police run the show, to obtain good results for themselves..

[avgas]

Agreed with the bringing policies into the 21st century... but I've always been led to believe (OMG I could be wrong ) that the previous, closest match case was the baseline i.e. the link posted by Smiffy http://www.northernadvocate.co.nz/lo...ceman/3911073/... 2 similar cases, 2 different outcomes... Why? Isn't law all about the precedents that are set in regards to the crime committed and then the mitigating circumstances taken in account in regards to sentencing? Whilst I accept it would be near impossible to have precedents for sentencing (because of circumstance), there should be no quibbling over the FACT that he was guilty. He should receive the conviction... the sentence should not override the conviction as it looks to have done in this case... that's kinda where i'm coming from...

Sadly that is human nature.
We even do it here.
Some foolish idiot crashes here and dies, I few on here would say he deserves it.
But if he crashes into a cop car or wire rope barrier - we cry that they should be removed from service.
While I still feel he is guilty - It is a dumbshit charge, we all do dumbshit. So by all means drag him over the hottest coals known to man (he could have killed someone).
But to kill his livelihood over it - WTF!.
Police Commissioner needs to come clean and say that he would be stood down for a short time, and then fully reinstated. Not told to go elsewhere.
I would expect the same from my employer if I lost my license. Until someone high up states that from now on a cop cant lose his job due to charges.........why even bother charging them, may as well give them a prison sentence as well because they wont be able to put food on the table at home.

So in summary:
1) Someone high up in the cops needs to say he wont lose his job, and will be reinstated.
2) He needs to go to a proper trial and plead guilty (again)
3) He needs his 30 raps, and to be put on some form of probation back at the cops.

3 cant happen before 1

[avgas]

I bet he can't wait till he gets his licence back, off to the pub and stop by the doughnut shop on the way home!
-Indy

Yeah he may even have to put the phone down. Its hard to drink, drive and talk

[BoristheBiter]

Ok, in my case, it was fairly clear that the case should never have come before the courts, so, the Judge exercised his discrectionary power to "give me a chance" (as like, I say, ordinarily it would hve never progressedthat far), sure in the case of the Police officer, it simply had to go in front of a Judge, but I really feel we don't know the whole story.

Yes it should have, you broke the law, you damaged something, you pleaded guilty, it should go on the record(i get the point about should have just been in front of a judge) just like this copper broke the law and drove over the limit.
The problem is conviction Vs sentince. you can still have a suspended sentince even if found/plead guilty.
This copper like all the others know if you get DIC you will loose your job.

[SS90]

Yes it should have, you broke the law, you damaged something, you pleaded guilty, it should go on the record(i get the point about should have just been in front of a judge) just like this copper broke the law and drove over the limit.
The problem is conviction Vs sentince. you can still have a suspended sentince even if found/plead guilty.
This copper like all the others know if you get DIC you will loose your job.

I don't agree.

Normally, such a charge would not have brought you before the court, so, why the hell should my indiscretion have been put on my (blank) record. I actually have a conviction clearance here, right now on my desk, that I had to get from the department of justice, before I could start my new job in Austria.

If I HAD of been convicted, I would have NO JOB, no apartment, and, NO FUTURE.

Due to the discretion of a Judge (for something he agreed I was pushed into reacting to) I now have a career, I have a legal right to live and work in Austria (the most difficult of all EU countries to get into), I have social security, health insurance and so on.

Any time I recant my story (obviously in more detail) I explain my gratitude to that Judge.

I also feel the experience made me a better person, I can talk with experience when advising people of actions and consequences, and I have been part of the NZ justice system, and, actually received justice (as far as all people concerned in my case.....the complainant (agitator) was in no way left out of pocket from the damage I caused (like I say, I would have "got away with it", and never have had to pay a cent, but instead I came clean, and made reparation, so, as I see it, "Justice was done", by me being discharged.

The same is true for this Police Officer.

Yes, he admitted to driving with excess breath alcohol.... (and, the officer who caught him did not try to cover up).

I am VERY VERY confident that if this Police officer was "way,way, way" over the limit (i.e he was under no illusions wether or not he was under the limit), then the Judge would never have given him the "discharge with-out conviction".

With-out knowing all the facts, it would seem to me that he had "one Beer too many" (literally), perhaps even had it too soon before driving, and, he was "over the limit" Bummer.

However, this is a situation that (according to the Judge) the "sentence" (i.e a DIC conviction, which would result in the loss of his job, as a Police officer) would out weigh the crime (slightly excess breath alcohol).

This officer (just as I) still received the same punishment he would have received if he had not been discharged.

My case, reparation of damage, and $500 court costs, The police Officer, 6 months loss of licence , along with $500 court costs.

Neither of us had this recorded as a conviction.

I assure you, my attitude would be the same as yours, if I had not been lucky enough to receive the second chance I did.

[BoristheBiter]

I don't agree.
I assure you, my attitude would be the same as yours, if I had not been lucky enough to receive the second chance I did.

I agree in parts to what you are saying.
I agree with the second chance bit. (i employed a guy with a long list of convictions).
But where do you draw the line on DWC?
Would you be saying the same thing if he crashed into somone?
What about assault? i have never had a conviction, could i get away with twating someone and use the same excuse?
I get the point you are trying to make, but tell that to all the poeple you have just been over the limit and got convicted.
Yes i know people get off all the time, and more often than not they don't lose there jobs (that is a condition of empolyment) but that should not be looked at until sentencing.

[SS90]

I agree in parts to what you are saying.
I agree with the second chance bit. (i employed a guy with a long list of convictions).
But where do you draw the line on DWC?
Would you be saying the same thing if he crashed into somone?
What about assault? i have never had a conviction, could i get away with twating someone and use the same excuse?
I get the point you are trying to make, but tell that to all the poeple you have just been over the limit and got convicted.
Yes i know people get off all the time, and more often than not they don't lose there jobs (that is a condition of empolyment) but that should not be looked at until sentencing.

In regards to "twatting someone", I don't believe that any Judge would discharge on that.... I know a guy my age who went to prison for 2 years (no prior's) for assault (it was quite serious though....... he is a little guy, on his own, and took out 3 guys with a small weapon.....apparently even the arresting officer expressed his surprise at this sentance), so it does seem that (rightly so) Judges differentiate between what sort of crime was committed when considering a discharge.

But here is where I agree with you 100%...." Tell that t all the people just over the limit and been convicted", that is true, and, if I had been in that group, I would undoubtedly be "up in arms"..... I guess opinion is swayed by experience!