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 Post subject: Luke McCormick
PostPosted: Mon Oct 06, 2008 22:42 
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The BBC report on the trial is here:-
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/7654430.stm

I find it interesting that McCormick's car was seen on a number of cameras being driven in a dangerous manner but there was no apparent attempt to deploy police to stop him.

Whilst there can be no doubt that the responsibility for the accident was entirely McCormick's I do have to question whether it would have happened if we had had sufficient traffic police on the roads to rein him in.

Again it is all very well to have cameras which can give additional evidence after an accident but even better to have police to stop these accidents. Would this accident have been as likely in Durham? I think not.

Regards

Malc


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 Post subject: Re: Luke McCormick
PostPosted: Thu Oct 09, 2008 19:43 
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Mallycoop wrote:
The BBC report on the trial is here:-
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/7654430.stm

I find it interesting that McCormick's car was seen on a number of cameras being driven in a dangerous manner but there was no apparent attempt to deploy police to stop him.

Whilst there can be no doubt that the responsibility for the accident was entirely McCormick's I do have to question whether it would have happened if we had had sufficient traffic police on the roads to rein him in.

Again it is all very well to have cameras which can give additional evidence after an accident but even better to have police to stop these accidents. Would this accident have been as likely in Durham? I think not.

Regards

Malc


Hi Malc.

I am getting on my :soapbox: :Soap Box: here :lol:

Very sadly - we do have drink drive and other incidents (Driver errors by the trolley load) in Durham. As you are aware from Wildy :neko:'s link to some foreign press a while back (in which she reported on the early publishing of EU KSI stats - and which did not include December's figures :roll: a the time of publishing ), a lower speed limit on the continent does not stop the hard core fools who are almost always at least twice our UK limit and more so when breathalysed after these tragedies and even single car - - drunk driver only injured - incidents :furious: :banghead:

But having said that - we must be doing something right-ish all the same .


OK .. to give just a little insight and perhaps help folk interpret those stupid league tables which measure more how we achieve a set target as opposed to how we actually deliver our police skills :roll: (GMP .. may have been near the bottom - even under the late and very able CC Todd (:bow: and God bless him) - but they were actually perfroming very well indeed -given the size of that area and its very different needs across all it boroughs. GMP officers hold a record for displaying courage in the course of their duties when all is said and done.) BUT.. they did not "leap to target" and if you recall the Force which topped 2007 charts fears it will be bottom in 2008 because it ditched "set and ridiculous targets by which performance gets measured")


Our patch is very small compared to Manchester - but we are perhaps not dissimilar in size to S Wales/Humberside/Lancs against which forces we tend to measure performances as these areas are more "comparing like to like" in terms of size, geo#graphy and mix of rural and fairly heavy industrial zones. Each of these areas will have "major crime traffic" passing through them as well. Our overall performance for management purposes will be comparing the types of crimes which prevail in these similarly sized in terms of actual police staff in proportion to M.O.P and the types of crimes we are most likely to encounter across the board.

We score HIGH on our record of prosecuting the "Darwinistic candidates" - but we fail in other areas. Why? Because like GMP - we try to focus on what matters.. the needs of the public as best as our resources will allow us.

Now .. after digressing a bit as to the problems each indivudual police force may have as regards league tables - we also have the "resource" problem



This means that like the Mad Doc - we have to "prioritise" according to needs. This means we "miss some some essentials". Economists might call this "the opportunity cost". I call it the "misguided and lost opportunity cost" :roll:


But back to the problem of our complete idiot in the shape of McCormich who drank a skinful.. and0 then drove in a red mist fuelled by drink and some red misted rage over some internet chattering and flirting on the part of his girlfriend :roll:


We have CCTV on some parts of our A1(M) patch and BE WARNED!" more than one of what the Wild :neko: dubs the "stealthmobile"****** :lol: on the rounds there.


BUT .. even if we hurried towards at warp speed (and such instances of emergency justify our being trained to drive at such speeds)



ou problem still lies in that we just may be too late to prevent al the same :banghead: M6? To be fair to colleagues - we are talking of a long major route and all maked and un marked "stealthmobiles" may be miles away from the recorded danger at any one time. :roll:


I am not at all making excuses or "copping out" or "ducking" on what are legitimate concerns and criticisms. I am trying to point out that we cannot be everywhere and we know we have some truly STUPID out there.

We do our best here. We do not and certainly CANNOT get it right all of the time .. but darned well do our best all the same. :roll: .. which for some "is not good enough" when they .. just hurt too much

[size=85 **** "stealthmobile .. pratmobile .. chav mobile .. repmobile :rotfl: ]I love the :neko: 's " plays on words " .. the wind up /make yer think/feel hot under the collar barbs - and the way she "teases and tasers out words" :rotfl: :roll: :bunker: :yikes: But then I've known her since she was just 4 days old. Her Bib bash punches? :lol: I am immune :lol: :rotfl: Hard cheese "ischt" on the menu .. :neko: :hehe: [/size]


More later. My evening meal now ready, Home made chicken noodle soip .. been marinating on the hob :cloud9: :cloud9: followed by "Wiener Schnitzel" and a lemon meringue pie - because of left over lemon from the Schitzel .. :cloud9:


Umm .. checked ... still not quite ready . As well cos of some hasty typos in anticipation :lol:

Means I might just have time to reply to the person I intented to reloy to before spotting this thread :lol:

Get angry? Take up cooking. I can assure you that it soothes and just blissful; :cloud9: :bighand: :angel: :drink2:

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 Post subject: Re: Luke McCormick
PostPosted: Fri Oct 10, 2008 20:46 
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I did think this was a rant in its own right.

But somehow .. it links in to this case.

MEN wrote:
Killer drink driver jailed
Don Frame
10/10/2008

A DRINK driver, who had never passed his driving test and caused the death of his girlfriend in a horrific smash, has been jailed for four years.

Mother-of-two Jayne Casey, 29, died from multiple injuries at the scene when Asim Rashid ploughed into a row of parked cars in Rochdale after losing control of his Toyota Corolla car.

Rashid, of Littleborough, Rochdale, did not have a driving licence, which meant he was also uninsured, but Bolton Crown Court was told he had also been disqualified from driving just 24 days before the tragic accident.

Passing sentence, Judge Anthony Rumbelow, said there were a number of aggravating features in the case.

He said Rashid showed no remorse or regret for what had happened. He had failed to stop after the accident to even check his girlfriend was all right.

He then made up a 'cock and bull story' about being the victim of a hit-and-run to deliberately deceive a bus driver who tried to help him.

Worst of all, said Judge Rumbelow, was a 'chilling' statement that Rashid later made during interview, in which he said he believed that God had a hand in everything and, for that reason, he believed it had been Miss Casey's 'time to go'. He said he did not think he could have done anything to prevent what happened.



My God! The God this family looks to each Sunday tells us we are responsible for our actions and our sins. :roll: Our God (the Catholic and Church of England one .. the CHRISTIAN one of the New Testament variety of forgiveness/human responsibility - but still with a Faith .. but a forever QUESTIONING one .. which furthers human progress) does not tell us to drink or behave stupidly because "it is someone's time to die" :furious:

This type of driver/biker/cyclist whichever .. blaming someone else.. be he their dead victim or "God" frankly sicken both me and Wildy.



MEN wrote:
The court had been told that Rashid, who had been going out with Jayne for seven months, had spent much of the night immediately before the accident drinking whisky and lager.

He claimed to police that he had only been behind the wheel of his car because his girlfriend, who had also been drinking, threatened that she would drive otherwise



Yep .. blaming the dead lady. How about the f:censored:g obvious .. like a taxi home. What a moronic twazak!

.
MEN wrote:
The judge, however, said he did not believe for a minute this had been the case.

Criminal behaviour

He told Rashid: "Your criminal behaviour has cost the life of a young woman and left two children without a mother. The impact on the whole family is quite apparent."



Thank GOD! The judge spelled it out.
MEN wrote:
Miss Casey's father, 56-year-old lorry driver, Bernard Casey, said after sentence had been passed:

"We don't feel the sentence was long enough, but that seems to be the way of the world. He may have got four years, but, for us, it is a life sentence.


Yes .. it does not seem enough. I am pleased his ban equals the sentence. But will the ban be concurrent with this sentence or start when the term finishes. And assuming this to be the case.. how the hell can you stop this idiot from driving whilst disqualified .. as it wafts naueatingly across from the tale so far that I will be reading that he kills again in the future. :furious:

MEN wrote:
"As a grandfather who is about to retire, I now find myself with two children to look after and, while I'm glad to do that, it seems totally unfair."

Mr Casey, whose 12-year-old grandson, Josh, was by his side in court, said that he and his wife, Christine, felt the judge had summed up perfectly the family's feelings and point of view.

He said: "We were particularly pleased that he made reference to the fact that Rashid has never shown any remorse, at first denied everything and didn't even have the decency to own up to what he had done. That would have spared the family a lot of grief and heartache."


Exactly, It why we do not forgive the police officer in the Over Kellet incident. He only showed "remorse" in front of a camera after being convicted of "careless" driving. He had blamed everyone else -including his trainer - for the accident prior to this. Reading between the lines of what the Williams family actually said .. they are not fooled that easily. The only comfort is that his career as a police driver is over .. permanently. Had he shown remorse - accepted that his driving skills lacked .. SKILL on this occasion - my wife and also me would not be so hard minded. But he did not. We find that unforgiveable. We forgave the person who killed Ferdl and made a firm friend with the widow of the man who almost killed Wildy. These people are surrogate uncle/granny to our kids .. and seen as solid pals. But then .. they accepted their part in our particular tragedies and dark periods. We were BRAKE mentality originally though. We rejected .. wanted our revenge.. wanted them to hurt .. feel the white heat ferocity of pain which we felt at the time. The we realised that this pain destroyed everyone. We made our peace and because each party fully accepted and felt the same hurt and guilt and even anger.. at what happened .. this BONDED us to a complete and utter understanding and friendship. I HOPE this will happen in these other really tragic cases and in Nathan Owen's case as well. I hope Nathan's parents can forgive those boys who fled with him - and because of their immaturity - perhaps saw the event differently to the parents and coroner and .. even the police and other adults :roll:

I am sorry to mix threads .. but somehow .. they are all interlinked and sorry to shout and jump up and down in what comes across as a "right feline frenzy" :listenup: SPELL OUT WHAT IS GOING WRONG WITH SOCIETY AS A COLLECTIVE !

MEN wrote:
The court had been told that, on the day of the accident, Rashid had been travelling at speeds of between 51 and 54mph in a 30mph limit on Featherstall Road in Littleborough before braking to about 39mph just before impact.

Rashid had restarted the car immediately after the crash and driven on for a further quarter of a mile before getting out and trying to push the damaged car off the road. It was at this point he was spotted by a bus driver, who got out of his vehicle to help and was told by Rashid that he had been involved in a hit-and-run accident.

Mr Stuart Neale, defending, told the court that experts had concluded that a nail in one of the rear tyres of the car had been largely responsible for the driver losing control. He claimed that Rashid had been in deep shock after the crash and had seemed unaware of what was happening.

He said his client had had to endure nine months of 'long, drawn-out torture' while he waited to learn his fate and he would have to live with what he had done for the rest of his life.

Judge Rumbelow told him, however: "You were nearly double the drink-drive limit and I have no doubt that that and having been up for most of the previous night caused this accident."

Rashid was sentenced to four years in prison for careless driving while under the influence of drink or drugs and he has been disqualified from driving for the same period. He was sentenced to a further four months for driving while disqualified.

There were no additional penalties imposed for failing to stop after an accident or driving without a licence.



We have to hand it to the defence who tried .. per his remit to get that "doubt sewn"

I think though .. little argument here. I accept panic. I accept fear of consequence.

But sometimes .. just facing up to the wrong we do might make justice and not revenge as an outcome. It may also prevent that life sentence of "if only" and guilty conscience as we mature and realise that what we held dear as kids.. may not have been common sense as society knows it. :roll: :popcorn: .

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 Post subject: Re: Luke McCormick
PostPosted: Sat Oct 11, 2008 10:05 
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Quote:
...he said he believed that God had a hand in everything and, for that reason, he believed it had been Miss Casey's 'time to go'. He said he did not think he could have done anything to prevent what happened.

This implies that believers in fatalistic religions ("it is all God's will") can consider it's OK to drive irresponsibly as no matter what happens, they are not culpable.

Extremely worrying.

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The views expressed in this post are personal opinions and do not represent the views of Safespeed.


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