Minicab driver who ran over cyclist whilst distracted on mobile phone spared jail

[Bod]

*How was this not "careless driving"*?

Abdelyekini Olafusi was found guilty of careless driving after he ran
down the woman in Clerkenwell.

Olafusi clipped the back of the 41-year-old cyclist’s wheel when he
turned right at traffic lights on Gray's Inn Road on May 27.

The cyclist, an Italian woman, fell off her bike to the ground but
Olafusi did not stop and continued to drive over her.

http://www.standard.co.uk/news/crime/taxi-driver-who-ran-over-cyclist-whilst-distracted-on-mobile-phone-spared-jail-a3519751.html

[Bod]

On 21/04/2017 10:57, Bod wrote:
> *How was this not "dangerous driving"*?

*Correction* dangerous driving

[JNugent]

On 21/04/2017 10:57, Bod wrote:

"How was this not careless driving?"?

Eh?

It *was* careless driving.

The exact quote is: "[he] was found guilty of careless driving after he
ran down the woman".

Also:

"He was found guilty at Highbury Corner Magistrates' Court on Thursday,
received a 15 month driving ban and was ordered to pay costs totalling
£1260."

For once, it sounds like an open and shut case.

There was no mention of the mobile phone offence, but perhaps it was a
hands-free phone and therefore wasn't an offence but an aggravating
factor in the careless driving case.

---
This email has been checked for viruses by AVG.
http://www.avg.com

[JNugent]

The distinction is whether driving falls below the required standard or
far below the required standard.

The latter is always (and rightly) hard to prove.

But the driver got a 15 month ban and a significant fine (£1250 IIRC,
and no mean penalty for someone whose livelihood has just been withdrawn
from him).

I wouldn't like to be on the paying end of his next insurance premium,
either.

Should he also have been fastened to a hurdle, drawn by horse to a place
of execution, then hanged (almost to the point of death), emasculated,
disembowelled, beheaded and quartered (chopped into four pieces)?

[James Wilkinson Sword]

If he'd clipped a car, there would have been a small dent and some paintwork required. Bicycles are for paths, not roads.

--
Illegal is a big sick bird.

[Bod]

It is NOT illegal to use a hands free phone whilst driving so one
assumes that he was holding the phone.
People with phones stuck to their ears should be made an example of with
jail sentences. That'll immediately greatly reduce the incidences of
these sort of accidents.

[James Wilkinson Sword]

On Fri, 21 Apr 2017 12:46:23 +0100, Bod <bodr...@yahoo.co.uk> wrote:

> On 21/04/2017 12:33, JNugent wrote:
>> On 21/04/2017 11:00, Bod wrote:
>>
>>> On 21/04/2017 10:57, Bod wrote:
>>
>>>> *How was this not "dangerous driving"*?
>>
>>>> Abdelyekini Olafusi was found guilty of careless driving after he ran
>>>> down the woman in Clerkenwell.
>>
>>>> Olafusi clipped the back of the 41-year-old cyclist’s wheel when he
>>>> turned right at traffic lights on Gray's Inn Road on May 27.
>>
>>>> The cyclist, an Italian woman, fell off her bike to the ground but
>>>> Olafusi did not stop and continued to drive over her.
>>
>>>> http://www.standard.co.uk/news/crime/taxi-driver-who-ran-over-cyclist-whilst-distracted-on-mobile-phone-spared-jail-a3519751.html
>>>>
>>
>>> *Correction* dangerous driving
>>
>> The distinction is whether driving falls below the required standard or
>> far below the required standard.
>>
>> The latter is always (and rightly) hard to prove.
>>
>> But the driver got a 15 month ban and a significant fine (£1250 IIRC,
>> and no mean penalty for someone whose livelihood has just been withdrawn
>> from him).
>>
>> I wouldn't like to be on the paying end of his next insurance premium,
>> either.
>>
>> Should he also have been fastened to a hurdle, drawn by horse to a place
>> of execution, then hanged (almost to the point of death), emasculated,
>> disembowelled, beheaded and quartered (chopped into four pieces)?
>>

> It is NOT illegal to use a hands free phone whilst driving so one
> assumes that he was holding the phone.
> People with phones stuck to their ears should be made an example of with
> jail sentences. That'll immediately greatly reduce the incidences of
> these sort of accidents.

Bollocks. You can be not paying attention without using a phone at all. On the other hand, I have no difficulty calling or texting while driving. People can multitask (driving is already doing a few things at once).

--
There is no such thing as a law abiding motorist, just those who have been scammed and those yet to be scammed!

[Bod]

Reality check! He *didn't* clip a car and the cyclist was *legally
allowed* to be on the road.
Try sticking to the facts rather than your personal desires.

[James Wilkinson Sword]

He clipped a bicycle which is inherently unstable, therefore unsuitable to mix with larger vehicles.

--
If trains stop at train stations, what happens at workstations?

[Bod]

It's *your* attitude to using a phone at the wheel that is all too
prevalent and that's why I say that drivers with phones to their ear
should be jailed to help stop their use.
I now put my phone into the glove box and that is where it stays whilst
I am driving.

[Bod]

Funny that I've been cycling on roads for about 60 years with no
problems whatsoever as have millions of other cyclists.

[James Wilkinson Sword]

Why can't you use a phone while driving? It's perfectly easy to do, and I see people driving work vans around all the time while holding one to their ear. Funnily enough the van is driven perfectly.

--
Instructions on a Chinese fuzzaway:
Do not use it in shaving off beard.
Avoid pressing heavy, to prevent damaging clothing or other trouble.
During process, pleace the positio stretch the clothing configuration.
Avoid using on long hari ware.
The box stored with fluff ball is made from strong dust-proof material, so you can clean it after back off.

[James Wilkinson Sword]

Some do, some don't. It depends whether you wobble about and cycle in the middle of the road like some in here. I cycle on the left, and if I need to turn right, I look over my shoulder, then indicate, then move over. But if there's a pavement available, I'll use that. Easier for me and the drivers.

--
Definition of a secretary:
An office fixture that isn't permanent until it's been screwed on the boss's desk.

[Bod]

You find that acceptible, most people do not.

Mobile phones biggest cause of road fatalities | UK | News | Express ...

www.express.co.uk › News › UK


Mobile phone-related car crashes have killed 67 people in three years ...
www.mirror.co.uk › News › UK News › Mobile phones

[Bod]

So you DO cycle in the road sometimes then, hypocrite.

[James Wilkinson Sword]

Clearly all the people using phones also find it acceptable.

And how can you find it unacceptable to drive correctly? I just said the vans were being driven well.

> Mobile phones biggest cause of road fatalities | UK | News | Express ...
>
> www.express.co.uk › News › UK
>
> Mobile phone-related car crashes have killed 67 people in three years ...
> www.mirror.co.uk › News › UK News › Mobile phones

It's not the phones that cause the crash, it's the bad driving. That can be done without a phone.
It should be instead be illegal to cause a crash. Consider two drivers, Mr Smith and Mr Jones.
Mr Smith causes an accident because he wasn't paying attention, or he's rubbish at driving or whatever.
Mr Jones drives along using a mobile phone, and drives perfectly.
Mr Smith is the one that caused harm, and should get into trouble, not Mr Jones.

--
Watching his date from the corner of his eye while he poured her a drink, the young bachelor said, "Say when."
She replied, "Right after that drink."

[James Wilkinson Sword]

Only when necessary. Usually there's a pavement or an alternate offroad track. I also watch where I'm going and don't occupy the whole bloody lane. The cyclist in the above was no doubt weaving around or not bothering to indicate before swerving in front of the car.

--
Peter is listening to The Who - Behind Blue Eyes

[Bod]

How on earth do you know that!?

[James Wilkinson Sword]

Experience of seeing cyclists do stupid things, both in real life and in news articles. The sort that do it are the ones in here who think they own the road and cars have no place on it.

--
Many of the world's greatest runners come from Kenya because they have a unique training program there -- it's called a lion.

[JNugent]

Not really, since there is no report of a charge for that. The story
goes on at length about use of a mobile phone, and it may well be that
he was using an ordinary hand-held phone (thereby doing so illegally),
but it doesn't actually say so, which is sort of my point.

> People with phones stuck to their ears should be made an example of with
> jail sentences. That'll immediately greatly reduce the incidences of
> these sort of accidents.

You do know that use of a hand-held phone while driving is not
punishable by a prison sentence, don't you?

And that it isn't even always an offence?

[JNugent]

I keep mine in my coat pocket and the coat on the back seat or in the boot.

The phone still works via the car's Bluetooth system.

[James Wilkinson Sword]

Snob. I'm traditional, I just pick up the phone and answer it. Easy to drop it on the seat if there's a policeman passing.

--
Two cowboys are talking over a beer, discussing various sex positions.
The first cowboy says his favorite position is "the rodeo".
The other cowboy asks what the position is, and how to do it. The first cowboy says, "You tell your wife to get on the bed on all fours and then do it doggy style. Once things start to get under way and she's really enjoying it, lean forward, grab her by her hair and whisper in her ear, 'Your sister likes this position too.' Then try to hang on for 8 seconds".

[James Wilkinson Sword]

>> It is NOT illegal to use a hands free phone whilst driving so one
>> assumes that he was holding the phone.
>
> Not really, since there is no report of a charge for that. The story
> goes on at length about use of a mobile phone, and it may well be that
> he was using an ordinary hand-held phone (thereby doing so illegally),
> but it doesn't actually say so, which is sort of my point.
>
>> People with phones stuck to their ears should be made an example of with
>> jail sentences. That'll immediately greatly reduce the incidences of
>> these sort of accidents.
>
> You do know that use of a hand-held phone while driving is not
> punishable by a prison sentence, don't you?
>
> And that it isn't even always an offence?

Depends on the mood the pig is in.

--
A sheet of sandpaper makes a cheap and effective substitute for costly maps when visiting the Sahara desert.

[Bod]

Read what I said again "People with phones stuck to their ears should be

made an example of with jail sentences"

I never said it was prisonable at the moment.

[James Wilkinson Sword]

Not causing an accident should never be a crime.

--
Why is there no Disneyland China?
No one's tall enough to go on the good rides.

[JNugent]

That's what you call a squirm, isn't it?

[Bod]

A squirm for simply suggesting it being made an imprisonable offence?

[JNugent]

You need to hon your reading and comprehension skills.

That is not what you wrote.

[James Wilkinson Sword]

It is, and it's still quoted above. Get your eyes tested.

--
Why was the nigger with diarrea freaking out?
He thought he was melting!

[Bod]

This is what I wrote ""People with phones stuck to their ears should be
made an example of with jail sentences".

Which way do *you* comprehend that sentence?

[TMS320]

On 21/04/17 12:53, James Wilkinson Sword wrote:
> On Fri, 21 Apr 2017 12:46:23 +0100, Bod <bodr...@yahoo.co.uk>
> wrote:

>> It is NOT illegal to use a hands free phone whilst driving so one
>> assumes that he was holding the phone. People with phones stuck to
>> their ears should be made an example of with jail sentences.
>> That'll immediately greatly reduce the incidences of these sort of
>> accidents.
>
> Bollocks. You can be not paying attention without using a phone at
> all.

...and even less attention when playing with a phone.

> On the other hand, I have no difficulty calling or texting
> while driving.

You have no proof of that.

> People can multitask (driving is already doing a few
> things at once).

Driving is a single task that involves performing actions in a serial
fashion. It does not involve doing several things at once.

People have a poor capacity to multitask and any attempt inevitably
leads to resources getting consumed by context switching. And they have
no proper means of setting priorities and schedules. The word is
horribly over used.

[James Wilkinson Sword]

I think he's turning into a cyclist, he doesn't understand plain English anymore.

--
Q: If you have a mothball in one hand and another mothball in the other hand, what would you have?
A: The undivided attention of a very large moth!

[Bod]

Perhaps Nugent will tell what he *imagined* I said. Nugent?

[TMS320]

There is no escape from Nugent's uncanny telepathic ability in knowing
what you were thinking as you were writing, no matter what you actually
wrote. Don't deny that you genuinely believed that mobile phone use was
imprisonable until he put you straight.

[Bod]

Ooh er! I've purchased a tin foil hat to prevent anymore of his mind
reading.

[TMS320]

No good. Only Nugletite knitted by a maternal grandmother when she was a
virgin weakens such powers.

[Bod]

In that case I shall wear my great grandfather's old Bodinium coated
socks. They will form a protective shield over my whole body. Nothing
will penetrate those, not even Nugentic waves.

[JNugent]

On 22/04/2017 11:32, TMS320 wrote:
> On 21/04/17 12:53, James Wilkinson Sword wrote:
>> On Fri, 21 Apr 2017 12:46:23 +0100, Bod <bodr...@yahoo.co.uk>
>> wrote:
>
>>> It is NOT illegal to use a hands free phone whilst driving so one
>>> assumes that he was holding the phone. People with phones stuck to
>>> their ears should be made an example of with jail sentences.
>>> That'll immediately greatly reduce the incidences of these sort of
>>> accidents.
>>
>> Bollocks. You can be not paying attention without using a phone at
>> all.
>
> ...and even less attention when playing with a phone.
>
>> On the other hand, I have no difficulty calling or texting
>> while driving.
>
> You have no proof of that.
>
>> People can multitask (driving is already doing a few
>> things at once).
>
> Driving is a single task that involves performing actions in a serial
> fashion. It does not involve doing several things at once.

Hmmm... There are at least three separate tasks, all being performed
sinultaneously.

One is the obvious immediate control of the vehicle in the immediate
environment with the very short term in mind.

Another is the prospect of the remainder of the journey (planning, or at
least remembering, routes, likely traffic conditions, etc).

Yet another is constantly scanning the environment for potential hazard
- whether it's a vehicle that looks like it isn't going to stop at a
give-way line, a pedestrian heading for the kerb but not glancing in the
approaching car'sdirection, cyclists on the footway who might divert
onto the carriageway at any moment, etc, etc.

There may be others, for instance conversation with passengers, the
operation of in-vehicle systems, heaters, demisters, wipers, radios,
CD-players, etc.

> People have a poor capacity to multitask and any attempt inevitably
> leads to resources getting consumed by context switching. And they have
> no proper means of setting priorities and schedules. The word is
> horribly over used.

Despite that, using a phone in a car - even whilst driving - is not illegal.

[JNugent]

That the sentencing power is currently available to the courts, of
course (but it isn't).

Even the most fascistic cyclist would not suggest that such draconian
punishment for a relatively minor offence should be automatic and not
properly considered by a court.

But I might be wrong in that last belief. Now that you have amplified
your meaning, we do now appear to have a case of a fascist urging that
citizens ought to be thrown into prison without due process and without
the possibility of defence or mitigation. Even house-burglars are
treated than that.

[James Wilkinson Sword]

No, he said it *should* be (although I completely disagree with his opinion).

> Even the most fascistic cyclist would not suggest that such draconian
> punishment for a relatively minor offence should be automatic and not
> properly considered by a court.

You have seen the posts from the cycling nuts in here, right? There are plenty who think every little misdemeanour in a car should result in immediate death/castration/deportation.

> But I might be wrong in that last belief. Now that you have amplified
> your meaning, we do now appear to have a case of a fascist urging that
> citizens ought to be thrown into prison without due process and without
> the possibility of defence or mitigation. Even house-burglars are
> treated than that.

When did he say there doesn't need to be evidence?

--
5 Brits were injured last year in accidents involving out of control Scalextric cars.

[Bod]

Looks like Nugent is a bit of a Walter Mitty.

[TMS320]

Reordering them, it is a process of accepting input from a single sensor
(eyes), processing the information and commanding a set of actuators
(arms and legs). It is complex, certainly, and in the transition from
learner to experienced driver the brain will split things up with a
number of semi-autonomous parallel processors, particularly for visual
recognition. It's all for one outcome; no more multitasking than my
central heating controller.

> There may be others, for instance conversation with passengers, the
> operation of in-vehicle systems, heaters, demisters, wipers, radios,
> CD-players, etc.

The mechanical items are just things on a list. If eyes are not looking
out of the window, the task runs to completion and cannot be suspended
by a high priority interrupt.

>> People have a poor capacity to multitask and any attempt inevitably
>> leads to resources getting consumed by context switching. And they have
>> no proper means of setting priorities and schedules. The word is
>> horribly over used.
>
> Despite that, using a phone in a car - even whilst driving - is not
> illegal.

A person with a funny wig has no control over mechanics.