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news
Warwick Road LeicestershireRoad rage attacker fined £10,000 - but no driving ban
A man who attacked a cyclist, fracturing his shoulder and leg, has been ordered to pay £10,000 in compensation.
The road rage driver, Michael Gibbins, became angry when the cyclist moved into the centre of the road to cross a narrow bridge near Kibworth, Leicestershire.
Gibbins, a self-employed driver, drove his Mercedes ‘intimidatingly close’ to the cyclist, before pushing him off his bike, reports the Leicester Mercury. The judge ruled Gibbins should keep his driving licence in order to pay compensation to his victim.
Tony Stanford, Prosecuting, told Leicester Crown Court: "The defendant lowered the passenger window and shouted something, with animated waving of his hands.
"He pulled up ahead of the cyclist and opened his door as he was passing. A witness said it looked as though the driver was deliberately trying to knock the cyclist over as he passed.
"The defendant then accelerated away and stopped further down the road.
"He got out of his vehicle and ran at the cyclist and either shoulder-barged or pushed him, knocking him off his bike, causing him to fall heavily on the floor."
The victim who was described as fit and healthy, with 40 years’ cycling under his belt, was in hospital for three weeks, off work for two months and walks with a limp after the incident left him with one shorter leg.
The Mercury reports the victim is no longer able to cycle long distances, and is still undergoing physiotherapy.
Gibbins was given a 16 month jail sentence, suspended for two years, with 210 hours of unpaid work. He was ordered to pay £10,000 to his victim within 12 months, and £250 court costs.
Judge Philip Head said: "This was road rage.
"He was an active man whose life you've impacted upon gravely.
"You were in a blind rage because of the affront you felt you'd suffered.
"He avoided your car door when it opened and you accelerated away, pulled up ahead of him, got out and raced over to push or shove him, propelling him off his bicycle.
"You stood over him saying he shouldn't have been mouthing off – even if he did say something to you, it was you who started this and you were the one who resorted to violence.
"You have no previous convictions and I accept it was an isolated incident – but you have to keep a lid on your temper.
"The public is best served by you continuing to earn a living and being able to pay compensation to your victim."
Mara Silva-Romefort, mitigating, said: "He left the scene only after he was told to leave by others who felt his presence was causing further distress and he didn't try and evade the police – he fully expected to be contacted.
"He has, right from the start, said he wanted to admit his wrongdoing.
"It's not a case of his having a lack of remorse, he's trying to understand why he behaved in this way and he is remorseful.
"He's a cyclist himself and that's why he felt able to remonstrate with the cyclist.
"He also drives for a living.
"He doesn't seek to excuse his behaviour."
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46 comments
This point may be too obvious for anyone else to mention, but I will. What the victim did, by taking the lane, was plainly correct. On such a narrow road, there was no possible safe way for the criminal to get past in his vehicle, so why on earth would he get angry?
And yet, I'm sure we've all been in situations where a fellow citizen in a car fails to understand the situation, and gets agitated because they perceive that someone on a bike is slowing them down and taking 'their' road.
it's interesting that most of these comments seem to take an entirely rationalist approach in an age where romanticism - the prioritising of the emotionally charged self-obssessed individual - has been in the ascendancy for a good couple of centuries.
I'd wondered about that too, if the photo at the head is the location of the incident. Looks like a single lane, so nobody can pass anyone on it anyway: are there traffic lights at each end or something?
Yes, traffic lights at either end with ASL for cyclists! It really is a very short section of road and no excuse for the driver's behaviour. It's Warwick Road in Kibworth.
I think you've hit the nail on the head. I have a similar situation on my commute and even though there is no room to safely pass, I'm amazed how angry a minority of drivers get. The usual response in these cases is for them to carry out a 'punishment pass' when I move over after the restriction, only for me to catch them up at the T-junction 100 yards further on.
I think an educational video would help a lot, I'm sure any sane person would realise that they are in the wrong if it's properly explained to them.
I had a situation where a cabbie pulled out on me, I said something unpleasant, and the whole situation escalated - we came to blows and the police were called and told us to both behave.
next day I saw the same guy and avoided him, instead going for a coffee, when I felt a tap on my shoulder - it was him, saying sorry and offering to pay for my coffee.
so yes, while you're right - and even this this chap in the story above realised he was at fault and admitted he had no excuse - it's hardly a strategy for prevention.
police who drive in high speed pursuits are trained to detect the triggers and implement a strategy for when the red mist starts to descend - but of course, if everyone was well behaved it would put a stop to a lucrative sourse of revenue for the various institutions involved.
I'm very doubtful that it would, but I'm not saying I'm 100% sure. Just in general I think 'education' tends to be over-rated as a solution for things. It takes more than just giving information for people to change their habits and attitudes.
In what context would drivers see this hypothetical video? I suppose it might be good if such situations were to be included in the driving test (at least it might help for the first month after someone gets a licence, before they completely forget it all in favour of the usual rules of 'might is right' and 'it must be OK if I find I repeatedly get away with it').
I was thinking as part of the driving test, combined with presumed liability legislation would be ideal. Some years ago I was in a taxi in Denmark, and the driver was ultra cautious around cyclists, he told me it was because of the trouble he would be in if he knocked one of them off.
Oh I do like a witch hunt by a lynch mob. Such justice. I do look forward to the day when cyclist who jump red lights are left hanging by the neck at the same lights as warnings to others................
Once you take the emotion out of this, the judge is right.
If I've read the piece correctly, the defendant was actually out of his car when he pushed the cyclist off. He admitted to GBH and was convicted of GBH, not a driving offence. Therefore the driving ban comments is are nullified to a point as this guy was on foot. I wasn't away you could be banned from driving for a crime committed on foot. If so there's a hell of a lot of people that should have driving bans.
If he was banned, he would loose his job probably become dependant (as could his wife and children) on state handouts for quite a while and not be able to pay any compensation.
This way he will be working for free for quite a while whilst the compensation is paid off. His wife and kids will also be affected but not disproportionately so. Hopefully Gibbons will learn the art of patience and understand that he is not the most important person in the world.
Now if he had driven his car into the cyclist, I would agree that a ban would be best. However as others point out, there is always the no lights, no hi-viz, low sun, ninja cyclist just jumped out of a bush in front of me excuses.
Have another read then....
"Gibbins, a self-employed driver, drove his Mercedes ‘intimidatingly close’ to the cyclist, before pushing him off his bike.
He pulled up ahead of the cyclist and opened his door as he was passing. A witness said it looked as though the driver was deliberately trying to knock the cyclist over as he passed."
Both these crimes committed whilst still in the vehicle.
neither of those actions resulted in injury to the cyclist. If they are going to start dishing out bans for driving intimidating close then the country's congestion problems will be solved. Also I am yet to see a driving ban for a dooring, so a ban for 'attempted dooring' woukd be disproportionate. I have to say I agree entirely with Yorkshire whippet.
I suspect both of those could be dealt with under threatening behaviour.
Probably a ban would be disproportionate yes, but I'd expect points and a fine for these driving offences.
A ban might be unacceptable in the joke that is our current system of not dealing with poor driving, but actually would be very sensible, since Gibbons has shown very well his lack of fitness to drive. And yes, banning everyone who does so would remove a lot of drivers from the road. This would be bad because?
So, if I take a swing at your head with an axe and fail to connect and then try and stab you and miss then that's all hunky-dory and I should be considered a sane person who should be allowed to acquire and use axes and knives in the future? That's great.
also - you should practice more
Hopefully the fact he received Criminal Compensation does not stop the victim taking the driver through the civil courts for Personnal Injury
And as he was out of his car when he pushed the cyclist, I imagine his motor insurance will refuce to pay out. So the driver could be losing his car and home to cover the costs
Wow. He keeps his licence 'to ensure he has income to pay for his crime' and the judge feels the very best singular way for this individual to earn a crust is to stay on the road?!
Are there not a myriad of other incomes available that would mean this prick is no longer driving around?
Just what do you have to do to get a ban these days?
Run over a judge.
Just making people pass the test again seems more reasonable than simply letting them carry on driving. i.e. no ban as such, just put them back to provisional and have to pass both theory and practical again.
You never know it might be lack of training and understanding rather than mentality.
That may be true of some collisions, but I'm not clear how you think "lack of training" explains a deliberate assault. Maybe "lack of understanding", but not of the sort that a driving instructor could remedy.
seems like anger management would be a better option
It was a general rather than specific comment. Hence my use of 'people' rather than the criminal's name.
Every court convicted motoring criminal should at least have to prove they know the rules and pass the theory test before simply resuming driving.
Some people are too stupid for help. Had he stayed in the car and simply run the cyclist over claiming sun in eyes or other mitigating circumstance then he may well have been clear and free. Small fine and his insurance would have picked up the compensation claim. By getting out of the car not only has he put himself at risk of taking on someone who may well have been able to defend themselves but his assault gets treated as such hence the relatively massive fine and suspended jail sentence.
The public is clearly best served by putting this dangerous unstable individual behind bars.
Judge Philip Head needs to stand down.
"The victim who was described as fit and healthy, with 40 years’ cycling under his belt, was in hospital for three weeks, off work for two months and walks with a limp after the incident left him with one shorter leg."
"Gibbins was given a 16 month jail sentence, suspended for two years, with 210 hours of unpaid work. He was ordered to pay £10,000 to his victim within 12 months, and £250 court costs."
So that's all right then.
One guy gets put in hospital for three weeks, off work for two months, is physically damaged forever, and the guy that does it just has to pay some money? Doesn't lose his licence? Doesn't have his car crushed in front of him?
No F****ng way. Maybe the judiciary sees this as justice, but I beg to differ. Surgical removal of driving licence, with certain other useless apendages like the brain, and descending to south of the waistline.
Sorry if I've offended anyone, but I'm sick of people getting away with killing and injuring innocent people and avoiding reasonable punishment.
Bring back hanging.
Nah, too easy.
Make him ride to work on a bike. Every day for the rest of his life.
That's not a punishment, that's a blessing (even if it means 'sharing' the road with motorised dicks).
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