Police killing us again!

[Kiwi Graham:Me]

And had that have been a truck coming over that rise rather than a bike?

I guess the offending driver would not have a $250 fine to worry about..Ya really have to watch for them low-profile 140kph trucks eh....

Ive been thinking about that too, in the context of some of that truck-cam footage on Campbell nearly Live tonight. a b train at 90kph wouldnt stop fuck all in 120m Just a smear of tin where a commodore used to be and a lingering smell of bacon.

I don't think it would have mattered 'what' was coming over that hill (speculation) If they had been travelling at the speed limit or slightly above they would have collected Lenihan. Had it been a truck there would probably been two deaths. A quote from Lenihan's passenger as the ute went by "I'm going to have him" and proceeded to do his fukin U turn (which according to experts would have taken more than 3 shunts) shows he was only focused on one thing. For Paul tragic and for him and his passenger bloody lucky it wasn't a truck.

The ruling is bullshit, I don't know how that judge went home, ate a meal and slept last night!

[CHOPPA]

It sounds like there were 2 people at fault, Paul and the Cop. If Paul was doing the speed limit maybe he would have stopped. If the Cop had not done the U turn he would not have hit the car.

It certainly seems that the penalties are heavily favoured toward the policemen.

Paul - Life
Policemen - $250

So this is what the issue is Scumdog. Are you a cop? If you are and you cant accept that he got off light then you have exactly the same ignorant mentality that highlights my point.

My friend instructs the police at Manfield and he said overall they are terrible drivers. The amount of crazy shit I have seen from Police that puts other motorists lives in danger just to chase a motorist that is slightly speeding.

I have been on patrol in 2 seperate police cars and we were having a hell of a time doing handbrake turns and as soon as we got a call the lights would be on and we would just drive in that direction flat stick for fun.

If I was a cop and I saw someone speeding I would do every thing I can to get them because it would be my job and my mission and a bit of a challenge and fun. You still have to be responsible for your actions. Im basically an electrician, if I were to leave a live cable out and electricuted some kid, just because the kid was waging school and shouldnt have been that wouldnt be an excuse

[ynot slow]

Choppa your point at the end is so true,re tools,work negligence.I had a case when little Johnny(actually Tarquinn)a spoilt little shite 4yr old who was annoying the fuck out of me onsite.I was installing a houselot of venetian blinds,the little shit would pull on the cords,genenerally doing his best to break them,his mummy kept saying "don't annoy Tony,he is busy",well I was.I went to the van to get an item,came back to find the shit had taken my stanley knife and was breaking the snap off blades on the vinyl floor,he had seen me do it and thought hmm give it a go,anyway Tarquinn managed to cut his finger,mummy wasn't pleased,but a day or so later I was contacted by OSH,seems the doctor had to notify them when itwas found the shit had been injured and a contractor was on site,was hauled over the coals for a while,until they realised I had shut the toolbox lid and the little shit went into the tools and took the knife,so was deemed a no fault accident on our behalf.

Bit long winded reply but two guys were in the wrong,sadly one is dead,other has it on his concience for life,to that extent the fine is irrelevant,if the cop is truly remorseful,but it wasn't the cops fault he got a piss poor fine,hnd the judge.

[Kiwi675]

What a fucking joke....... One rule for the establishment ....... Blah blah blah .........yup..... Do you think any non-police would have got that sentence...... It's just crap

[insane1]

this pig sould be jailed for what he did ,are driving standards that piss poor he only gets a fine for his balls up,has he even still got a job?.

[Robbo]

Just a thought, but if the driver of the ute had not been breaking the law by driving at 150km/hr then we would not even have had this tragic situation and this discussion would not be taking place.
Therefore three factors have led to this tragedy, the ute's speed, the location of the U-turn and the speed of the motorcycle.
In hindsite, i'm sure all three parties would have done things differently had they have foreseen this outcome.
Once again this is a reminder to always ride with your stopping ability in full view of you.
R.I.P. Paul

[jetboy]

Ultimately, no matter how you look at it, a vehicle pulled a 3 point turn in an unsafe location which sadly caused someone to lose their life.

But, because the vehicle was operated by a police officer and the person who lost his life was a motorcyclist, people are quick to judge and lay blame.

The media then peddles: The cop was a long-standing 50 year veteran, the motorcycle didn't have a current wof/rego. A ute was speeding.

But they are not relevant to the underlying cause of the unfortunate incident.

A vehicle pulled a 3 point turn in an unsafe location, which sadly caused someone to lose their life.

[Headbanger]

Just a thought, but if the driver of the ute had not been breaking the law by driving at 150km/hr then we would not even have had this tragic situation and this discussion would not be taking place.
Therefore three factors have led to this tragedy, the ute's speed, the location of the U-turn and the speed of the motorcycle.
In hindsite, i'm sure all three parties would have done things differently had they have foreseen this outcome.
Once again this is a reminder to always ride with your stopping ability in full view of you.
R.I.P. Paul

Rubbish, The driver of the ute is responsible for his actions and nothing else, You can take him out of the equation.

The speed of the motorcycle could be a contributing factor but unless I have missed something thats just pure guess work on behalf of the person who directly caused the collision, the cop, and as such can't be considered fact.

Fucker should have been hung. The fact is he put his car in the opposing lane at a place highly likely to kill someone.

[Robbo]

Rubbish, The driver of the ute is responsible for his actions and nothing else, You can take him out of the equation.

The speed of the motorcycle could be a contributing factor but unless I have missed something thats just pure guess work on behalf of the person who directly caused the collision, the cop, and as such can't be considered fact.

Fucker should have been hung. The fact is he put his car in the opposing lane at a place highly likely to kill someone.

Yes, you have missed the point. It was the ute's speed that triggered this whole unfortunate situation in the first place but as i suggested, the U-turn was not a sensible move given the location it took place in.

[T.W.R]

A couple of things no-one has mentioned:

Target fixation and panic

both the plod & the rider would be guilty of these two

[jellywrestler]

sounds like it is time for some good old UK RIOTS eh?

[MSTRS:Me]

Going back to the Buller incident....
The cop there did a 3-point turn in an equally stupid place, also within 150m or less of a roadside turn-around area and his action caused 2 bikes to hit his car. Those bikes were also believed to have been speeding, but there was no proof of that in exact terms. That cop was eventually pinged for a dangerous manoeuvre and ordered to pay $30,000 to each rider (if I remember right).
The point is, the parallels between the 2 cases almost exactly line-up. So why, oh why, was the Te Kawhata cop only fined $250??

[_Shrek_]

the fact is if it was one of us that caused the acc we would have been done for dangerous driving causing death & lost our licence & had a very large fine as well

so why is only a 250 fine orderd here? or is it ok to do u turns in front of just so Smith & his mates can justify their acc charges on us

[Grubber]

I guess the offending driver would not have a $250 fine to worry about..Ya really have to watch for them low-profile 140kph trucks eh....

Seen this happen before so all ya smarty comments don't wash too well with me.

Some years ago i drifted slowly through a country road giveway only to be hit by a car coming out of a side road at 90kph. This was in a 70kph area. Fact is, i screwed up and failed to giveway. Issues arising are this, other driver was not wearing a seatbelt and was speeding. He suffered a small cut to his right forehead just above his eye. took 4 stitches to fix. Basically he walked away without any major injury as such.
I got charged with Careless use of a motor vehicle causing injury. Which i though was fair enough at the time.
The outcome was this, $550 fine plus court costs, $280 medical remuneration, 6 months loss of licence.

So you will excuse me if i find this most recent fine for the officer involved in this tragic death a WHOLE LOT OF BULLSHIT FINES FOR THE BOYS IN BLUE!

Sorry Scummy, but if you're gonna stand there and tell me this was justice then ya not the dude i thought you were.

[Headbanger]

Yes, you have missed the point. It was the ute's speed that triggered this whole unfortunate situation in the first place but as i suggested, the U-turn was not a sensible move given the location it took place in.

The ute is irrelevant.

It would have made no difference if the cop had seen a horse in a field or a UFO in the sky before he decided on his course of action.