Charges against Westminster bus lane biker dropped

In what are described as ‘bizarre’ driving charges against a Westminster man who it is claimed that Police prosecuted after falling victim to a motorist who ignored the Bikes in Bus Lanes policy introduced by Boris Johnson.

In September last year Cardale Tobias-Dalphinis, aged 29, was riding his motorcycle along Rochester Road in Westminster when he was involved in a collision with a car.

The car driver pulled out of Camden Road into the path of Mr Tobias-Dalphinis’ motorcycle. Mr Tobias-Dalphinis struck the front of the car and was thrown over the bonnet.

Mr Tobias-Dalphinis was using the bus lane which he was entitled to use, and keeping to the left hand side of that lane to allow maximum visibility, a fact well borne out by the impact point of the accident. It was clear that the car driver had driven well past the point where he would have first been able to see Mr Tobias-Dalphinis and all the way across the bus lane into his path without considering that a motorcycle may have been present.

The Police brought a prosecution on the basis of a van driver who felt that Mr Tobias-Dalphinis may have been travelling quickly, in circumstances where he saw Mr Tobias-Dalphinis travel little over 1 metre of carriageway. The Police completely ignored the evidence of the passenger in the van who could see the approach of Mr Tobias-Dalphinis over some distance who gave evidence to the police that he was not speeding at all.

Mr Tobias-Dalphinis, a star performing care worker who was congratulated by Boris Johnson in 2009, was badly hurt in the accident. He suffered severe initial injuries and is continuing to receive treatment.

Both the police and the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) are severely criticized by Mr Tobias-Dalphinis’ lawyer, Darren Hackley-Green, who is managing the case and is head of the motor defence team at Cardiff-based law firm NewLaw.

He claims that the prosecution was frivolous and based on the weakest evidence. There was no prospect of this prosecution succeeding if challenged as the Police themselves had evidence in Mr Tobias-Dalphinis’ favour which no magistrate could have disregarded, and no firm evidence that Mr Tobias-Dalphinis was travelling anything but properly. The real victim is Mr Tobias-Dalphinis, of one of many motorists simply ignoring the well-publicised scheme and failing to Think Bike, and of a culture of prosecuting motorcyclists by default owing to an assumption that magistrates will assume them to be less safe than car drivers.

‘It’s quite ridiculous ,’ claims Darren Hackley-Green. ‘First, the police decide to prosecute Cardale for his riding, even though they have stronger evidence from a witness who says Cardale couldn’t have avoided the accident and was travelling properly.

‘It’s also concerning that the CPS dropped the charges without argument when challenged, despite the prosecution being brought in the first instance following the review of the attending officer, a senior lawyer at the CPS and the work by the CPS file handler. All of this time costs public money and resources, not to mention our fees for defending Mr Tobias-Dalphinis which are paid out of public money.

‘Meanwhile Cardale had suffered exceptionally serious injuries in the accident. He was exceptionally distressed at not knowing why the police intended to charge him, and questions why he should be further stressed by a prosecution with no prospect of success.

‘To have a scheme which is intended to save public money, and then to prosecute motorcyclists who are victims of other motorists who ignore it, only serves to waste that money saved in times when we are all facing public cut backs.

We find increasingly that public money is wasted on poorly evidenced prosecutions against motorcyclists who are pre-judged as "unsafe" regardless of any evidence in their favour."

ends

For further information, call Darren Hackley-Green on 02920 784237.

Notes to editors Client requests that he should not be approached for interview. Darren Hackley-Green will be pleased to help journalists in reporting this story.

More on NewLaw at: http://www.new-law.co.uk/

31/01/2011