SMIDSY biker killer cleared

the laws an arse

Posted: 03/07/2012 at 10:49

Sorry mate, I didn't see you...........prick. I hope he's haunted by this.

Posted: 03/07/2012 at 10:50

So does this judgement mean that Sorry i didn,t see you is now a legal getoff free precedent if so it is disgraceful.

Posted: 03/07/2012 at 11:09

Seriously though, when was "sorry I didn't see you" an acceptable reason for getting off scot free?

If he didn't see him, he wasn't looking hard enough - ergo was being careless. "Causing death by careless driving".....!!!!!!!!!!!!!

If the driver was injured, maybe he can sue the widowed family for allowing the guy to have a motorbike in the first place?

What is wrong with the world???!!!

Posted: 03/07/2012 at 11:43

so he should of had his eyes tested at least ?

Posted: 03/07/2012 at 11:51

So in theory "Sorry office I didn't see the 40 sign" should be a valid and acceptable reply!

Posted: 03/07/2012 at 12:18

I wonder what the courts would say if I started driving around Foxton, on the look out for his Jaguar XF, and then plow into the drivers side door at full pelt to see how he likes it.

After all, I wouldn't get in trouble, I didn't see him...

Posted: 03/07/2012 at 12:35

Maverick - As far as my very limited knowledge on the law goes, I believe the claim is that if you didn't see the vehicle, then you aren't able to stop for it. Once a case hears this defence and is cleared, it sets a legal precedent that can be used by others in their defence.

All it amounts to is that anyone can kill a biker and get away with it.

Posted: 03/07/2012 at 12:38

"I didn’t see him" is an admittance of careless driving / driving without due care and attention..! On this statement alone the judge should have directed the jury that the only option was to convict.

Good point eddypec does this set a precedent for other motoring offences..??? Good luck trying it the next time you're rolled by the Peelers.

Posted: 03/07/2012 at 12:41

If any of you fired a gun into the woods, and killed a rambler that you "didn't see" you'd still be prosecuted.

Whilst you are in control of any vehicle, you are being responsible for possibly the biggest weapon most of us will ever get our hands on. Surely there must be some accountability for the guy pulling the trigger?

World gone mad.

Posted: 03/07/2012 at 12:51

I had a van pull in front of me today while he was going through a red light today, but it was ok as He didn't see me!! or the traffic light or the cars that had stopped in the lane next to him.

I really think the current legislation is really taking the p1ss.

Posted: 03/07/2012 at 13:06

forgot to mention
He probably got away with it cause he was driving a Jaaagg!!

Posted: 03/07/2012 at 13:11

Is there more to this story than is written above? If the motorcyclist was doing well in excess of the speed limit then 'smidsy' is a perfectly valid excuse.

Posted: 03/07/2012 at 13:27

Note: I said 'If'.

Posted: 03/07/2012 at 13:28

This was from Horncastle News and doesn't mention anything about speeding.
'But a 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 because of the sun which he described as “low and blinding.”'

Like everyone else has already said. Not being able too see something and pulling out anyway means careless driving surely?!.
Just exactly what kind of half brained morons where on the jury?

How this can even be called justice is beyond me and personally i think its F**king disgusting.

Posted: 03/07/2012 at 13:46

IrishRob if I am driving my JCB and I pull out of a junction in front of Mr MacIntyre and he was driving well in excess of the speed limit and the unfortunate Mr MacIntyre was to break his neck could I, according to your theory, claim SMIDSY as a "perfectly valid excuse".
Myself and a few hundred bikers are awaiting your reply.

Posted: 03/07/2012 at 14:02

This judgement puts the onus on the biker to take extra care (as if we didn't already know it). So in response we should perhaps slow to 10mph every time we go past a junction where there is a car sat waiting to pull out. Can you imagine the road rage that would ensue as the guy in the car behind us keeps having to slow down. It would not be long before the car behind pulled out and slapped into the car that had pulled out "because he did see the bike or the car!

The only way to address such prejudice is to force everyone (including judges) to ride a motorbike for at least 1 year as their only mode of transport!

Posted: 03/07/2012 at 14:16

If you were in your JCB and I was driving at speed towards the junction then I would be thinking:

Make eye contact with the driver
Slow down for the junction
Watch the front wheels for movement
Plan an escape route

If I didn't do any of these and you still pulled out in front of me causing a collision then the responsibility would be mine.

The very first thing you should learn especially on a bike is that 'blame' is utterly meaningless as it doesn't serve too well as a painkiller. What is truly dangerous is to expect all drivers to have perfect driving skills and 100% concentration all of the time.

Mobus - Your extra information certainly points the finger at the car driver. My concern is that so many people here were quick to jump on the blame game, presumably without this extra information.

Posted: 03/07/2012 at 14:23

"The only way to address such prejudice is to force everyone (including judges) to ride a motorbike for at least 1 year as their only mode of transport" - Not exactly realistic is it?

Posted: 03/07/2012 at 14:27

This is a disgrace! He should have ATLEAST had his license revoked. If you say, 'I didn't see him', then you were obviously not driving with due care and attention. I'd put good money on it that he came straight out of that junction without looking. It's happened to all of us at some point.

Posted: 03/07/2012 at 14:49

If you COULDN'T SEE the junction was clear, you SHOULDN'T have pulled out.

Posted: 03/07/2012 at 15:03

IrishRob after 43 years riding on the road and off road and also being an all year rider with no accidents or motoring offences I will take no lessons on how to ride a bike from you.
If you look at your original statement it would seem to say that it is OK to pull out if someone is coming towards you at excessive speed when quite clearly it isn't. This is not being too eager to play the blame game it is merely every road users responsibility to ensure their safety and the safety of others. Whether in a car or on a bike or bicycle we all have to make allowances for other road users and their careless actions. Your original statement implies that this could be otherwise.
If I have miscontrued your words I do apologise and I do agree blame is utterly meaningless. Developing a sixth sense and making allowances for less than perfect drivers has managed to keep me safe over many thousands of miles.

Posted: 03/07/2012 at 15:11

I am a driving instructor (car) who also rides a motorbike. As a driving instructor all my pupils are taught "if you don't KNOW don't go" and that means take an extra look and be sure you have seen everything. I didn't see you should mean without doubt 'driving without due care and attention'with no exceptions for low sun, speed or anything else.

Posted: 03/07/2012 at 15:39

This asshole simply employed a better lawyer than the bikers family got.. from another publication:

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

Perhaps a better question would be: 'How hard did you look?.. How good is your eye-sight?'

It's black and white.. regardless of 'the sun' this bloke pulled out without looking properly and killed a man. YOU CAUSED DEATH BY DANGEROUS DRIVING MACINTYRE AND YOU KNOW IT.. HOPE THIS HAUNTS YOU FOREVER!

Posted: 03/07/2012 at 15:41

Whether he saw him or not, whether he was far or near, the car driver pulled out and caused a collision and his death. It was his job to look, listen, think. Give way means just that.

"Make sure it is safe before pulling out", for yourself and for others. Have we all forgotten the words from the test and lessons and highway code ????

Make sure means "make sure", not just glance and assume. This especially applies if the sun was low and blinding.

What part of that did the "retarded" and "prejudiced against bikers" jury and judge not understand !!

Posted: 03/07/2012 at 16:25

People pull out in front of bikes all the time, every day. it happens to me in some shape or form every time i go for a ride. And no i don't speed and am clearly visible. I do all my speeding on the track !

Until and unless people know there will be proper penalties if they cause accidents then it wont stop.

Every such thing, changes only when the penalty gets high enough. At the moment it just isn't. I am not saying everyone should end up in jail, but getting off scot free when it was your responsibility to be sure, lest you kill or hurt someone, will not make people be more careful.

Most car drivers have no idea what happens when a car hits a motorbike or vice versa.

Maybe an ad campain saying and showing just this "Do you have any idea what happens when a car hits a motorbike ?"

Posted: 03/07/2012 at 16:32

Surely it is careless purely on the FACT that he wasn't paying enough attention to have seen the Bike.

Posted: 03/07/2012 at 17:25

Nothing new, been happening for 35 years..or more, it'll never change since SMIDSY has ALWAYS been a viable defence in Court......Courts/Jury's will almost always NEVER side with the blameless Biker........

Cars,and their unobservant drivers, kill MORE /pedestrians/cyclists/motorcyclists than almost anything................

Posted: 03/07/2012 at 17:54

http://company-director-check.co.uk/director/908397005
Read this and wonder why he was let off.

Posted: 03/07/2012 at 18:27

I wonder how would it have gone if the word 'biker' was replaced with 'child on bicycle'...

Posted: 03/07/2012 at 20:54

Had that rider been a judges son...... that wa**er would be starting a rather large prison term as we speak, it just goes to show that the good old justice system in this country..... like everything else is corrupt..... i hope the judge, the jury the fuckwit driver and his entire family are haunted by what they caused..... 5 kids with no dad, a wife with no husband and friends who have lost a best friend.... with no closure because the tosser responsible is probablly sitting with his toffee nosed friends laughing about it.... WANKER

Posted: 03/07/2012 at 21:14

I absolutely cannot understand how this can be right!! Surely this should be challenged somehow.

Makes me so angry I cannot describe it.

Just defies belief that not seeing a bike is a valid defence and if it is well it's like open season on bikers.

My deepest sympathies to the family.

Now if ever there was a good reason for a protest ride, here it is!!!!!

Posted: 03/07/2012 at 21:16

Good point Whiskey. But why should 'child' evoke stronger emotions than 'biker'?
There has to be a culture change towards bikers. Not sure how 'we' can influence change however but it needs to happen or this case, as mentioned previously sets a bad precedence for future cases.

Posted: 03/07/2012 at 21:24

Paul Moore..........'protest ride'. You might be onto something there.

Posted: 03/07/2012 at 21:27

I would ride a long way to take part if I had too.

We could use junction markers in a whole new way.

Posted: 03/07/2012 at 21:37

A friend if mine got a £600 fine and banned for 12 months whilst driving a car, he overtook another car but hit a central reservation he didnt see because of the sun, no other vehicle was damaged, no one hurt, he wrote his car off, the law is an arse with no consistancy, this guy should of been banned

Posted: 03/07/2012 at 22:15

"DISGUSTING" the guy on the bike could have been dressed from head to toe in fairy lights & dayglow clothing....and STILL the excuse I didnt see him would be used....This happens way to much. If it was a child would the same excuse still be acceptable?!?!!

Posted: 03/07/2012 at 22:28

The jury here were obviously wrong and should have been guided differently by the judge. The biker's family should be advised to appeal, or take out a private prosecution. Not being able to see it's clear (due to low sun) is NOT the same as seeing it IS clear. A biker of average skills should not be expected to know the driver would be unsighted by the sun behind him, but it should have been obvious to the driver that he was unsighted, therefore the onus should have been on him to ensure it was safe for him to pull out.
It's a particularly risky situation for bikers as your outline often isn't big enough to be silhouetted like a larger vehicle would be, hence on advanced biking causes riders are (or should be) taught to beware in these circumstances.

Posted: 03/07/2012 at 22:32

Demonstration ride is a great idea,around Foxton way might just bring the message home.

Posted: 03/07/2012 at 23:20

The law is bollox!! Having just been through a court case where police and magistrates showed no common sense whatsoever , I cannot believe this guy got away with it! Sad times we live in

Posted: 03/07/2012 at 23:58