50-something driver arrested after beating up charity cyclist who complained of close pass

Agreed.

What a nasty piece of work driver - dangerous driving within the safety of his car, his wrong doing pointed out and then violence to the one who'd been wronged by him ;-(

I'm saddened no one stopped to help / stop them.

Daveyraveygravey wrote:

...shows following cars that there was a problem with the close pass, and nearly all of them give exaggerated amounts of room.

Yes I've noticed this too.  I think this must add weight to the argument that most close passes are just ignorance rather than malice.  If only there was a goverment ad campaign, I think (if implemented correctly) that would do wonders.

"Charlie says..."

I dont buy the idea that someone close passes you by ignorance but then is so intently staring in their rear view mirror to watch you given the narrow angle,rear pillars of most cars etc theyve got to be 2-3 car lengths up the road before you are even visible to them, at which point then they decide to go all road rage with you. ?

Awavey wrote:

I dont buy the idea that someone close passes you by ignorance but then is so intently staring in their rear view mirror to watch you given the narrow angle,rear pillars of most cars etc theyve got to be 2-3 car lengths up the road before you are even visible to them, at which point then they decide to go all road rage with you. ?

I always reckon there are three types of close pass

1) A perfecly reasonable driver who does not realise he is doing anything wrong - He needs educating

2) A totally incompetent driver who has not seen you or cannot judge speed and distance - This is the one that really scares me

3) The punishment pass - He usually does not want to hit you, just scare you to death - giving him the finger is like a compliment, it confirms he has done a good job

The problem is you don't always know who you are dealing with

no you dont know who you are dealing with, but I cant think of any other instance in every day life where you encounter a complete stranger who then with just even the mildest or subtlest admonishment to them suddenly flips and goes completely into a psychotic rage with the intent to cause you harm. if you are in a supermarket and someone bumps into your trolley and you say do you mind not doing that, they dont respond by suddenly grabbing tins off the shelf and start chucking them at you, but a driver who close passes you with intent, and is looking for a reaction, immediately brake tests you, slows up,tries to get you alongside to swerve into,basically anything to knock you off your bike, and if that fails they stop and then start swearing at you.

so drivers 1) and 2) arent remotely caring about you from the off, so what do they care if you start flipping the bird at them,you're just one of those crazy cyclists they read about in their favourite newspapers or hear about on radio phone ins. Driver 3) is looking to have a go at cyclists, close passes deliberately,wants a reaction not as a compliment I dont think but more as the gateway to them doing what they really wanted to do from the off which is cause you physical harm, whether thats because they are pumped full of 'roids, or god knows what I dont know, but Im of the belief there are alot more of driver 3) around than there are 1) or 2)

I had some nutter 2 or 3 years ago. I was waiting at a zebra in a narrow road and he decided it was best to stop next to me. As I pulled off, I waved him to get away from me and give me space. He then left hooked me and brake checked me on the road immediately after the crossing. There were traffic lights at the end which were red, so I stopped, got on to the pavement and remonstrated with him
He actually accused me of trying cash for crash. When I got my phone out, he pulled forward through red not far off running over a 5year old. He also had his wife and youngish child in the car, but that did not stop his rage.
Shame I didn't have a camera then.

Awavey wrote:

I dont buy the idea that someone close passes you by ignorance but then is so intently staring in their rear view mirror to watch you given the narrow angle,rear pillars of most cars etc theyve got to be 2-3 car lengths up the road before you are even visible to them, at which point then they decide to go all road rage with you. ?

If you read what I originally quoted, you will see that I am talking about the following drivers, not the original close pass. The original close pass could well be by one with a chip on shoulder. I accept that.

which I agree with, the 2nd car always gives you a good indication of how bad the 1st overtake was and more often than not gives you at least double the amount of room, I just dont buy that most of the 1st overtake close passers are doing so in ignorance any more, there are too many instances where the driver then goes into full on road rage attack mode if the cyclist reacts, for it to be coincidental

 If only there was a goverment ad campaign, I think (if implemented correctly) that would do wonders.

Absolutely nothing works except prosecution and points on the licence. The comedy driving course has no effect.

Spending a day in each other's shoes ( wheels ) would probably do the trick

wtjs wrote:

 If only there was a goverment ad campaign, I think (if implemented correctly) that would do wonders.

Absolutely nothing works except prosecution and points on the licence. The comedy driving course has no effect.

Nothing works for the minority who are malevolent.  But I think education does work for the ignorant.  Putting folk on bikes for the first time has been shown to be an eyeopener.  Most people are decent. Have faith.

Can't remember which video it was that was linked from here recently but the guy just used his bike as a shield very effectively.

Back handed d-lock to the knee also seems a plan to me.

I had to do that a week or so ago, when a driver threatened to kill me and leave me in a ditch, and positioned his van in order to drive straight at me.  I held my bike at head height to discourage him from doing so - knowing that if I was dead in a ditch, I'd not be found for hours or days and he'd get away with it; but he'd find it a bit harder to evade detection if there was a bike embedded in his windscreen.  Chances of detection were somewhat lowered by the fact that the 5-year old van he was driving was SORNed, untaxed, un-MOTed and probably uninsured.

Richard D wrote:

I had to do that a week or so ago, when a driver threatened to kill me and leave me in a ditch, and positioned his van in order to drive straight at me.  I held my bike at head height to discourage him from doing so - knowing that if I was dead in a ditch, I'd not be found for hours or days and he'd get away with it; but he'd find it a bit harder to evade detection if there was a bike embedded in his windscreen.  Chances of detection were somewhat lowered by the fact that the 5-year old van he was driving was SORNed, untaxed, un-MOTed and probably uninsured.

I've had an incident like that too. It's these people who are on the edge of society, driving around in an illegal vehicle, who perhaps have little to lose that scare me. They are not bothered by what the police or courts could throw at them.

Daveyraveygravey wrote:

I haven't had the threat of violence for a while, but I don't let a close pass go without some comment and gesticulation... but I'm no good at fighting and know I would end up worse off.

Same boat. I had a terrifying one where I was passed by someone, accompanied by a blast of horn, on a 50mph dual carriageway. I threw up an arm in protest. The rather large security guard driving then skidded to a halt in front of me, got out and motioned as if to get the barking alsatians out of the back of his van. Fortunately we could agree that his horn was actually intended for the car who pulled out sharply in front of him to overtake me, but I've thought maybe I should keep the gesticulation to myself in future...    

More serious. Above that is attempted murder. Key word is intent, it was a deliberate act to cause harm.

Philh68 wrote:

More serious. Above that is attempted murder. Key word is intent, it was a deliberate act to cause harm.

OK, thanks.

I'm glad to hear that the charge is serious, even if I have my doubts on whether anything will come of it...

Especially in the current climate, a plea bargain type thing will leave the motorist pleading guilty to 'being a bit mean in a public place'...

a plea bargain type thing will leave the motorist pleading guilty to 'being a bit mean in a public place'..

I agree that the police/ CPS/ court excuse finding machinery winning over justice is the risk here.

A broken wrist is a relatively minor injury and wouldn't normally prompt that kind of charge, it would be the deliberate and sustained nature of the attack. But it would be dependent on witnesses to corroborate the victim's account. A lesser charge might be more likely to result in a conviction. But you never know, if there's a history of assaults it might stick.

Philh68 wrote:

A broken wrist is a relatively minor injury and wouldn't normally prompt that kind of charge, it would be the deliberate and sustained nature of the attack. But it would be dependent on witnesses to corroborate the victim's account. A lesser charge might be more likely to result in a conviction. But you never know, if there's a history of assaults it might stick.

Disagree.  When I did my training, a broken bone was to be prosecuted as causing grievous bodily harm (with or without intent).  Although the last 20-30 years the Police and CPS have watered down such things again and again

It is what is commonly called GBH, the more serious form of the charge which in full is given as "wounding with intent" or "causing grievous bodily harm with intent". It's a serious charge and if proven, the accused would undoubtedly be jailed.

Maximum: Life imprisonment
Offence range: 3–16 years’ custody