I watched this video of a recent road rage assault on a cyclist in Birmingham and was left feeling shaken by the level of aggression by the driver of the van and surprised and disappointed that the driver was not prosecuted and the cyclist was given the choice of local resolution or caution for the driver. The cyclist chose resolution which consisted of a letter of apology from the driver and some compensation. Surely this is a clear case for prosecution. Once again cyclists treated like second class road users again.
What are your thoughts?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qHukon1_9xo
Or as it appears it was taken down but now reposted
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ehqBtcjOIc8
Road Rage Assault on Cyclist
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BryterLayter
- Posts: 34
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- Location: Handsworth Wood, Birmingham
Road Rage Assault on Cyclist
Last edited by BryterLayter on 21 Apr 2013, 8:49am, edited 1 time in total.
And now we rise
And we are everywhere
And we are everywhere
Re: Road Rage Assault on Cyclist
BryterLayter wrote:What are your thoughts?
My thoughts (and actions) are to email the company and ask (politely) if they'd like to explain.
http://www.weirdnwonderfulltd.co.uk/contact.php
It appears they had a Facebook page but it's been taken down, probably because they were getting flack...
(Linking the video to the shop name should help too if you can find appropriate places to do it)
Re: Road Rage Assault on Cyclist
Just watched. That is outrageous!
Protection of the law? What protection!
Protection of the law? What protection!
For a successful technology, reality must take precedence over public relations, for nature cannot be fooled - Richard Feynman
Re: Road Rage Assault on Cyclist
Unbelieveable. 
Why didn't the police charge the driver? Or speak to the bus driver (check video on the bus?) if they didn't feel the video was sufficient evidence?
Why didn't the police charge the driver? Or speak to the bus driver (check video on the bus?) if they didn't feel the video was sufficient evidence?
“In some ways, it is easier to be a dissident, for then one is without responsibility.”
― Nelson Mandela, Long Walk to Freedom
― Nelson Mandela, Long Walk to Freedom
Re: Road Rage Assault on Cyclist
If he treats a person like that, how does he treat the animals in his shop?
For a successful technology, reality must take precedence over public relations, for nature cannot be fooled - Richard Feynman
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thirdcrank
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Re: Road Rage Assault on Cyclist
weird N wonderful - "a home for pets & reptiles."
With a pet like that, who needs reptiles?
With a pet like that, who needs reptiles?
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Mr. Viking
/pig.jpg)
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- Location: Liverpool
Re: Road Rage Assault on Cyclist
That is quite horrible. I suffered a similar assault from a van driver last year and it put me off cycling for a while. I think that compensation and a letter seems to be a sensible resolution for this crime though. The cyclist thankfully doesn't seem to have been injured, and the compensation should cover the cost of repairing his bike. I am not sure if such an assault would be worth prosecuting over, as unpleasant as the incident seemed to be
Re: Road Rage Assault on Cyclist
Mr. Viking wrote:I am not sure if such an assault would be worth prosecuting over, as unpleasant as the incident seemed to be
Why?
For a successful technology, reality must take precedence over public relations, for nature cannot be fooled - Richard Feynman
Re: Road Rage Assault on Cyclist
I see that YouTube has pulled the video. The reason: "Shocking and disgusting content"
I find that disturbing about that because the shocking and disgusting content came not from the cyclist but from the motorist's assault on him.
This is a worrying development.
I find that disturbing about that because the shocking and disgusting content came not from the cyclist but from the motorist's assault on him.
This is a worrying development.
For a successful technology, reality must take precedence over public relations, for nature cannot be fooled - Richard Feynman
Re: Road Rage Assault on Cyclist
Geriatrix wrote:I see that YouTube has pulled the video. The reason: "Shocking and disgusting content"
I find that disturbing about that because the shocking and disgusting content came not from the cyclist but from the motorist's assault on him.
This is a worrying development.
Someone complained, who might that be...
Lets face it, if you were the victim of such an assault walking home from the pub (or had assaulted someone in that manner) the police would have been all over it.
It's pretty offensive IMO that they did nothing and I'm even more aggrieved that it would appear the perps have had the video taken down obviously unwilling to face the consequences of their action.
I hope the poster makes an attempt to both get the video reinstated and posts it on another site.
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Dynamite_funk
- Posts: 538
- Joined: 2 Nov 2011, 9:10am
Re: Road Rage Assault on Cyclist
There's a thread on this in the CC forum and I think the most likely reason the video was pulled was that the perp and his wife started receiving threatening messages.
Vigilantism is not acceptable either and its counter productive. That video was going viral and had it stayed there the police would have had some awkward questions to answer as to why they had let the motorist off so lightly.
As distasteful as it is, vigilantism is a symptom that a community or group feels their grievances are ignored and needs to take matters into their own hands. That needs to be addressed. That video and the lack of official response to the motorists actions certainly got my blood pressure going.
Vigilantism is not acceptable either and its counter productive. That video was going viral and had it stayed there the police would have had some awkward questions to answer as to why they had let the motorist off so lightly.
As distasteful as it is, vigilantism is a symptom that a community or group feels their grievances are ignored and needs to take matters into their own hands. That needs to be addressed. That video and the lack of official response to the motorists actions certainly got my blood pressure going.
For a successful technology, reality must take precedence over public relations, for nature cannot be fooled - Richard Feynman
Re: Road Rage Assault on Cyclist
The uploader is upset how things have turned out regarding the video.
From his twitter feed:
From his twitter feed:
"I do not condone the actions of anybody who has contacted this company
with death threats or otherwise threatening content. Out of order."
"It does nothing to promote the case of cyclists being treated as a
persecuted minority and makes us appear as bad as the driver."
"If the video is reinstated I've got a lot of mucking out to do. Christ
on a bike I should have disabled comments for the first few hours."
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thirdcrank
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- Joined: 9 Jan 2007, 2:44pm
Re: Road Rage Assault on Cyclist
What seems to be known as Restorative Justice (RJ) is something that arrived since I retired so I can't offer anything first hand.
I think that part of it came from a feeling that there was nothing between the formal caution and a prosecution. It enables certain things to be done and I think that simple compensation from a contrite offender is one. (ie if a caution would be suitable but it would leave the victim a couple of hundred quid out of pocket, it saves the taxpayer stumping up megabucks for an uncontested trial, just to get the victim their £££.)
It's inevitable with things introduced to fill a gap that they end up being used in the areas either side of the gap. So, some cases which should go to court will be dealt with under RJ, and at the other end, somebody who might once have received a formal caution will now have some RJ tacked on for good measure. Incidentally, it's suggested above that the victim was offered the choice of disposal between a caution or RJ. There may have been some misunderstanding there because I thought that the RJ was supplementary to a caution in a case like this. One of the main effects of a caution is that as it's a formal disposal of the case, it's recorded in much the same way as a conviction. I'd be surprised if a suspect agreeing to RJ were to be a way of avoiding that.
The best info I can find is this from the CPS. I got as far as reading the General Principles but I felt my eyes glazing over. By the time I had reached "Community Capital" I'd had enough.
http://www.cps.gov.uk/legal/p_to_r/rest ... tice/#an01
As to whether a caution is appropriate in a case like this, I can only say that for some years now, cautions have been used for some quite serious offending. Politicians bluster about zero tolerance and the like, but the policies they promote are those which save money.
I think that part of it came from a feeling that there was nothing between the formal caution and a prosecution. It enables certain things to be done and I think that simple compensation from a contrite offender is one. (ie if a caution would be suitable but it would leave the victim a couple of hundred quid out of pocket, it saves the taxpayer stumping up megabucks for an uncontested trial, just to get the victim their £££.)
It's inevitable with things introduced to fill a gap that they end up being used in the areas either side of the gap. So, some cases which should go to court will be dealt with under RJ, and at the other end, somebody who might once have received a formal caution will now have some RJ tacked on for good measure. Incidentally, it's suggested above that the victim was offered the choice of disposal between a caution or RJ. There may have been some misunderstanding there because I thought that the RJ was supplementary to a caution in a case like this. One of the main effects of a caution is that as it's a formal disposal of the case, it's recorded in much the same way as a conviction. I'd be surprised if a suspect agreeing to RJ were to be a way of avoiding that.
The best info I can find is this from the CPS. I got as far as reading the General Principles but I felt my eyes glazing over. By the time I had reached "Community Capital" I'd had enough.
http://www.cps.gov.uk/legal/p_to_r/rest ... tice/#an01
As to whether a caution is appropriate in a case like this, I can only say that for some years now, cautions have been used for some quite serious offending. Politicians bluster about zero tolerance and the like, but the policies they promote are those which save money.
Re: Road Rage Assault on Cyclist
Geriatrix wrote:There's a thread on this in the CC forum and I think the most likely reason the video was pulled was that the perp and his wife started receiving threatening messages.
Vigilantism is not acceptable either and its counter productive. That video was going viral and had it stayed there the police would have had some awkward questions to answer as to why they had let the motorist off so lightly.
As distasteful as it is, vigilantism is a symptom that a community or group feels their grievances are ignored and needs to take matters into their own hands. That needs to be addressed. That video and the lack of official response to the motorists actions certainly got my blood pressure going.
I agree, that's why I included the word "polite" in my original response to the OP.
I've no problems emailing (or snail mailing) the perps and asking them politely what was going on. I wouldn't expect a reasonable response but I'd expect that a few hundred such mails would focus their minds a little next time.
Mailing the sort of vitriolic stuff you see peppered around does nobody any good and far from making the perp ashamed of their actions gives them a rallying call that enables them to refocus from what they've done wrong to what we've done wrong.