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A policeman accused of driving at 159mph was speeding on the “right” stretches of road, a court has heard.
Pc Mark Milton is standing trial for dangerous driving and speeding after cameras on board his unmarked car clocked him driving at high speeds.
But former police driving instructor Douglas Boulton, who viewed a video of Pc Milton’s driving on the day, said he saw “no problem with it at all”.
Pc Milton, 38, from Telford, Shropshire, denies both charges.
Second trial
Mr Boulton, a defence witness, questioned the accuracy of the camera’s speedometer and told the court that, in his experience, police officers trained on normal roads and were expected to drive “as fast as it was safe to do so”.
He said advanced drivers, such as Pc Milton, were expected to keep up their skills.
“Michael Schumacher at the end of the Grand Prix season doesn’t sit down and do nothing for six months – he still practises and tests because he has to keep himself at a particular level.”
He said after viewing the video of Pc Milton’s driving on the day: “His driving, as far as positioning, I find no problem with it at all.
“The speed when he did it, he did it in the right places.”
Pc Milton, who was driving a 3.2l Vauxhall Vectra on 5 December 2003, is facing his second trial.
He was originally cleared of the same charges but the High Court overturned his acquittal and ordered a retrial.
The case was adjourned until Friday.
A policeman who drove at 159mph on a motorway has been found guilty of dangerous driving and given an absolute discharge.
Cameras on board Pc Mark Milton’s unmarked car clocked him driving at high speeds on the M54 in Shropshire.
He was originally cleared of the same charge but the High Court overturned his acquittal and ordered a retrial.
But despite his “eye watering” speeds the judge at Ludlow Magistrates’ Court gave Pc Milton an absolute discharge.
District Judge Peter Wallis said the 38-year-old from Telford, Shropshire, had “suffered enough” with two-and-a-half years of court proceedings.
‘Experimenting’ with vehicle
The Police Federation said they were “disappointed” with the verdict and would lodge an appeal.
Ludlow magistrates were shown the footage of the West Mercia police officer speeding on the motorway at 0300 BST in a 3.2l Vauxhall Vectra on 5 December 2003.
Prosecutors said Pc Milton, described as ” the creme de la creme” of police drivers, had also driven at 131mph on a nearby A-road.
Pat Sullivan, prosecuting, admitted there had been some dispute over the speeds the camera had recorded but said it was accepted they were “broadly” accurate.
During the trial, Insp David McWilliam, based at Telford police station with Pc Milton, said the constable had told him he was experimenting with the Vauxhall Vectra as he had not driven it before.
Pc Milton, an advanced driver, has always maintained he was familiarising himself with the car and the reason for his high-speed driving was to practise the skills he had learnt.
In a statement read out in court, he said: “I was advised to familiarise myself with vehicles, so when there was a need to respond at speed you were aware of its performance.”
Story from BBC NEWS:
https://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/1/h…re/5284962.stmPublished: 2006/08/25 10:44:04 GMT
“I was advised to familiarise myself with vehicles, so when there was a need to respond at speed you were aware of its performance.” – I’ll have to remember that excuse!!
Unbelievable!!!!!!!
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