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SMIDSY biker killer cleared

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Irn-Bru
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PostPosted: 10:12 - 03 Jul 2012    Post subject: SMIDSY biker killer cleared Reply with quote

https://www.visordown.com/motorcycle-news--general-news/smidsy-biker-killer-cleared/20957.html

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The jury at Lincoln Crown Court cleared Mr MacIntyre of causing Mr Blackburn's death by careless driving after hearing he simply did not see the motorbike coming.


How is that not careless? Confused Must have a good lawyer.
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CaNsA
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PostPosted: 10:21 - 03 Jul 2012    Post subject: Reply with quote

fkin ridiculous

Next time i get pulled for anything by the rozzers i will use the defense.

"Sorry mate, i didnt see the sign/you/your police car"
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Hetzer
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PostPosted: 10:24 - 03 Jul 2012    Post subject: Reply with quote

Without knowing all that the jury heard...like maybe the biker was doing 90 in a 40? Otherwise it's hard to understand what the jury could have been thinking. Confused
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map
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PostPosted: 10:27 - 03 Jul 2012    Post subject: Reply with quote

I'd be interested to know if this sets any kind of precedent and case law.

I think each incident has to be judged individually but I'm concerned if "Crown vs MacIntyre" could be brought up to justify future "just didn't see him" defence.

This is Lincolnshire wrote:
...The jury heard Mr MacIntyre, who was travelling with his wife, described the sun as low and blinding when he looked to the left as Mr Blackburn rode along the A155 from west to east
...
Mr MacIntyre was discharged from the dock after after the jury took just minutes to return their not guilty verdict at the end of a three-day trial
....

This is Lincolnshire wrote:
Comment
by adamcayhall

Tuesday, July 03 2012, 7:17AM

“We weren't there so we should not make inane comments.

The jury (12 men and women of the public) heard the evidence and delivered their verdict accordingly, job done, one person deceased and one who has to live with this accident forever, not nice either way

RIP David Blackburn Sad


FWIW this looks like the junction at Hagnaby
I wonder if the jury was all car drivers or if any rode a motorcycle, or would that be prejudicial to the case Confused

Confused
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Last edited by map on 11:00 - 03 Jul 2012; edited 4 times in total
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Kris
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PostPosted: 10:29 - 03 Jul 2012    Post subject: Reply with quote

This is exactly why I want a switch on my bikes to turn the headlights OFF.

When the sun is low and behind you, a headlight can render you invisible to others.

Mad Mad Mad
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hazza
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PostPosted: 10:33 - 03 Jul 2012    Post subject: Reply with quote

Accidents are just that. Accidents.

The stakes are just that much higher when you ride a motorcycle.
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MarJay
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PostPosted: 10:36 - 03 Jul 2012    Post subject: Reply with quote

There is a well known problem with the size of A pillars on modern cars. It means that when you look around the A pillar, if you move your eye line in the opposite direction that a bike is coming from, the bike can be hidden behind the A pillar for the entire look.

This is why you should always look around the front of the A pillar on roundabouts, not behind it.

I wonder if the prosecution were aware of this, because it means that his driving fell below the standard reasonably expected of him if he didn't look in a way that is likely to see a bike...
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Mr Calendar



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PostPosted: 10:44 - 03 Jul 2012    Post subject: Reply with quote

MarJay wrote:
There is a well known problem with the size of A pillars on modern cars. It means that when you look around the A pillar, if you move your eye line in the opposite direction that a bike is coming from, the bike can be hidden behind the A pillar for the entire look.

This is why you should always look around the front of the A pillar on roundabouts, not behind it....

There is this THINK! safety video for car drivers (from YouTube) - clicky link. Illustrates the point a little Confused
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shooter
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PostPosted: 10:49 - 03 Jul 2012    Post subject: Reply with quote

MarJay wrote:

This is why you should always look around the front of the A pillar on roundabouts, not behind it.


wut? you are saying you should never look out the side window? Confused
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_matt
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PostPosted: 11:40 - 03 Jul 2012    Post subject: Reply with quote

this happens pretty often though sadly.

General Public's view:
Get on a bike, you may as well be cutting your wrists

Bikers View:
Cagers are fucking careless

I had a mate killed in Staffordshire (by the county show ground) last year cos someone cut the corner in front of him (coming the other way). Car driver walked away from it with a slap on the wrist. Nobody gives a shit about bikers cos "we're a menace" and "we're all careless and stupid yobos"

sorry, but that fucks me right off
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MarJay
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PostPosted: 11:56 - 03 Jul 2012    Post subject: Reply with quote

shooter wrote:
MarJay wrote:

This is why you should always look around the front of the A pillar on roundabouts, not behind it.


wut? you are saying you should never look out the side window? Confused


No. I'm saying that as you rotate your head around the pillar to look behind it (through the side window) you can mask a bike behind the pillar. I'm saying, if you move your head from the side window to the front instead of from the front to the side you can't possibly mask a bike with the A pillar.
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Rogerborg
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PostPosted: 13:59 - 03 Jul 2012    Post subject: Reply with quote

Repeated for emphasis:

A bit less trolling-for-outrage report wrote:
The jury heard Mr MacIntyre, who was travelling with his wife, described the sun as low and blinding when he looked to the left as Mr Blackburn rode along the A155 from west to east

The jury were told to consider the position of the sun at the time of the collision. [The prosecutor] told them: "How low in the sky was the sun? How bright was that sun?"


Dunno why the CPS is doing the defence's job for them, other than through force of habit. 58 year old XF drivers can afford the best justice that money can buy.

Just another "Eh, bikes are hard to see, don't beat yourself up over it old chap" aquittal. Nothing new there, sadly.
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angryjonny
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PostPosted: 14:02 - 03 Jul 2012    Post subject: Reply with quote

MarJay wrote:
I wonder if the prosecution were aware of this, because it means that his driving fell below the standard reasonably expected of him if he didn't look in a way that is likely to see a bike...

You really think that all car drivers could reasonably be expected to know this, and failure to look around the A pillar in such a manner is negligence?
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MarJay
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PostPosted: 14:05 - 03 Jul 2012    Post subject: Reply with quote

angryjonny wrote:
MarJay wrote:
I wonder if the prosecution were aware of this, because it means that his driving fell below the standard reasonably expected of him if he didn't look in a way that is likely to see a bike...

You really think that all car drivers could reasonably be expected to know this, and failure to look around the A pillar in such a manner is negligence?


Dunno but its worth a try! Wink
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terrim
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PostPosted: 14:11 - 03 Jul 2012    Post subject: Reply with quote

It's sad that someone can get off for the reason "I didn't see him. I hope there was more to it than that. That might set a president in the future.
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Rogerborg
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PostPosted: 14:15 - 03 Jul 2012    Post subject: Reply with quote

While A-pillars don't appear to have any bearing in this case, it is a definite issue. The wife's new Zafira has A pillars thicker than Warped, I must look like some demented owl as I weave my head from side to side to get a clear view.

And of course, like 95% of drivers out there, she doesn't bother.

The very first roundabout on my commute is where I'm going to get mashed up, I just know it. I'm on a blind approach and potentially hidden right behind the A pillar of approaching traffic tanking it down a steep hill and just not expecting anything to emerge from my direction.

Having just wired up an alarm siren to my flasher switch, I'm now fingering it like a trigger approaching that roundabout. I know that I should just damn well use it and/or the horn pre-emptively, but one doesn't like a make a fuss like some excitable Continental... Doh!
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Dave70
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PostPosted: 14:29 - 03 Jul 2012    Post subject: Reply with quote

I guess I'll ring up my insurer and tell them to throw my insurance claim in the bin then. If drivers can get away with pulling out of a junction in front of you and get off with it as "They did not see you" being a good enough reason.

What ever happened to driving without due care and attention?

I know we don't know the full story but, this as it reads is discusting. Evil or Very Mad

Hmmm...might go and mow the ex down tonight. It'll be OK, I'll just say I didn't see her Wink
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Andy_Pagin
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PostPosted: 14:51 - 03 Jul 2012    Post subject: Reply with quote

So in a nutshell what this case implies is:

If you want to pull out across oncoming traffic, and can't see what's coming towards you, just go for it, it doesn't matter if you kill someone.

Surely to god this verdict has to be contested somehow, its bloody insane.
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snikks
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PostPosted: 16:27 - 03 Jul 2012    Post subject: Reply with quote

With any luck, some of the jurors will be hit by the driver they've just let off for murder due to lack of attention, when he just "doesn't see" them crossing the road. Now that would be poetic justice.
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TheSmiler
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PostPosted: 16:54 - 03 Jul 2012    Post subject: Reply with quote

Most probably going to get karma raped because of this but in my opinion smidsy is just accidental death.

snikks wrote:
With any luck, some of the jurors will be hit by the driver they've just let off for murder due to lack of attention, when he just "doesn't see" them crossing the road. Now that would be poetic justice.


I would class it as accidental death it's not really murder unless he saw him and maliciously pulled out on him. If you want to class it anyway near murder it would be manslaughter. Even then I doubt he intended to kill the biker.
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Walloper
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PostPosted: 17:19 - 03 Jul 2012    Post subject: Reply with quote

It should make all bikers who read the story think how safe they are 'sharing' public roads with other vehicles.
I do not dam and blast those who SMIDSY me now. I hope I anticipate the move before it happens.

One should really ride to the road conditions and be aware of changes in situations.

I am not convinced SMIDSY is a panacea to be used for so many accidents involving cars that hit bikes.
Likewise, I do not feel Hi-Viz helps as much as advocates for it's use think it helps. Hi-viz may make you easier to see but people have difficulty judging speed and distance.

If you tee-bone a car then you were riding too fast for the conditions. I put my safety in my own hands rather than rely on the ninkumpoops who may not see me.
Being dead by a careless driver or a not careless driver still means yer dead.

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Walloper
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PostPosted: 17:21 - 03 Jul 2012    Post subject: Reply with quote

snikks wrote:
With any luck, some of the jurors will be hit by the driver they've just let off for murder due to lack of attention, when he just "doesn't see" them crossing the road. Now that would be poetic justice.


Steady on old boy..
That's a bit thick.
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jjdugen
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PostPosted: 17:29 - 03 Jul 2012    Post subject: Reply with quote

Like it or not, low sun can be blinding. Its not that I condone a driver puling out when nearly blinded, its just that it will happen. Surely the answser is a photo-reactive film on side windows to cut the glare down
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Dave70
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PostPosted: 17:38 - 03 Jul 2012    Post subject: Reply with quote

TheSmiler wrote:
Most probably going to get karma raped because of this but in my opinion smidsy is just accidental death.

snikks wrote:
With any luck, some of the jurors will be hit by the driver they've just let off for murder due to lack of attention, when he just "doesn't see" them crossing the road. Now that would be poetic justice.


I would class it as accidental death it's not really murder unless he saw him and maliciously pulled out on him. If you want to class it anyway near murder it would be manslaughter. Even then I doubt he intended to kill the biker.


But surely if he has killed the biker through neglegence, he must face a charge and punishment that fits the crime. It can not be right that someone can do this sort of thing and be allowed to walk away with it by saying it was an accident?

Of course he never meant to kill the biker but the fact remains that his poor judgement lead to this guys death. IMO this is a very bad decision to say the least.
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TheSmiler
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PostPosted: 17:48 - 03 Jul 2012    Post subject: Reply with quote

Dave70 wrote:
TheSmiler wrote:
Most probably going to get karma raped because of this but in my opinion smidsy is just accidental death.

snikks wrote:
With any luck, some of the jurors will be hit by the driver they've just let off for murder due to lack of attention, when he just "doesn't see" them crossing the road. Now that would be poetic justice.


I would class it as accidental death it's not really murder unless he saw him and maliciously pulled out on him. If you want to class it anyway near murder it would be manslaughter. Even then I doubt he intended to kill the biker.


But surely if he has killed the biker through neglegence, he must face a charge and punishment that fits the crime. It can not be right that someone can do this sort of thing and be allowed to walk away with it by saying it was an accident?

Of course he never meant to kill the biker but the fact remains that his poor judgement lead to this guys death. IMO this is a very bad decision to say the least.


Unless negligence is proven via proof at the scene be it witnesses or visual/auditory then it is innocent until proven guilty. I'm not a lawyer or an expert on law, most smidsy's I would class as accidental because you are not aiming to kill and until negligence is proven then you are going to get these outcomes in court.

Either way this guy would either end up in prison for life, or he can stay out on the roads and "free" (although this will be with him for the rest of life) and pay tax towards the country. You can also look at the fact that bikes are only a small percentage of the population and if you ride past someone then ask them at the end of their journey the will say they didn't remember it.
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