Dangerous Driving Medical Defence
Do you have a dangerous driving medical defence?
The offence of dangerous driving requires that a person’s driving falls significantly below that of a prudent driver, and a person found guilty of this offence will be disqualified, will have to take an extended retest before they can drive again, and will be at risk of a custodial sentence.
We were recently instructed by Charles, who was being investigated by the police for dangerous driving. He was found to be driving the wrong way on a motorway, causing other vehicles to swerve to avoid him. One of those other drivers had alerted the police, who discovered Charles in a confused state.
People may read this and imagine that the case is fairly black and white against Charles, but as criminal defence solicitors we understand that cases are rarely black and white.
The truth behind this case was heartbreaking.
Charles was an elderly man who had left the house hours earlier to travel for a work meeting. He had become confused and disorientated very quickly upon leaving the home, and in his desperate attempts to get on to the correct road to complete his journey, he had ended up travelling the wrong way on a motorway. Despite being on the road for hours, he was only a few miles from home when he was found.
Charles and his family were devastated by the danger he had presented to other drivers. He voluntarily handed over his licence to the police.
We worked with Charles to understand how he had found himself in this position. He was a man of good character with a clean driving licence.
Our investigations unearthed the fact that Charles had suffered a mild transient ischemic attack (a TIA), a stroke-like attack, while driving. He had no medical history that would suggest that this could have been predicted, and was in good health otherwise.
Charles had a dangerous driving medical defence.
We were able to build a file of medical evidence and present this to the police, who considered the file and made the decision that they did not need to refer the case to the prosecution service for a charging decision. They were satisfied with our representations and decided themselves that no further action would be taken against Charles.
Charles and his family were delighted with this outcome and will be able to move forward with their lives now.
If you are in need of criminal defence solicitors who will listen to your case without judgement, call Forrest Williams now on 01623 397200.
