Are police ruthless in giving out tickets - asks Cllr. Black

A former chair of Moyle DPP has questioned whether police in the area are "ruthlessly" dishing out fixed penalty notices to members of the public.

Speaking at a meeting of Moyle District Policing Partnership in Cushendall last week, SDLP Councillor, Madeline Black, stressed she was voicing concerns of the public who had contacted her about the alleged “lack of flexibility” in relation to fixed penalty notices.

Councillor Black said: “Is there no flexibility in this matter? I am told that fixed penalty notices are being dished out ruthlessly and I am simply asking if there is no flexibility to people who have never broken the law. I have had a number of calls from people who are just devastated by it.”

The Councillor’s comments were set against a background of a huge increase in the number of notices issued for what police describe as “causation factors for KSI’s (killed or seriously injured).

From April to December in 2008, 110 tickets were issued, but in the corresponding period in 2009, 1035 tickets were doled out - a whopping 840.9% increase.

Responding to Councillor Black’s comments, the Area Commander, Chief Inspector John Magill, agreed that all police officers had discretion, but he pointed out that not wearning a seat belt, for example, was a major cause of accidents where people were seriously injured or killed.

“As someone who has been to the scene of many road traffic accidents and witnessed the carnage, seat belts are important. This legislation was introduced in 1984 and I would be hard pressed to find someone with a case to answer for not wearing one,” he said.

Councillor Black countered by suggesting police were still “a bit heavy-handed,” to which Chief Inspector Magill commented: “Motorists do have the right of appeal”

He added: “The PSNI have made it clear that the way of dealing with failing to wear a seat belt is an endorsable fixed penalty ticket and only in extreme circumstances would that not happen.”

The Chief Inspector said police paid particular attention to ‘hot spot’ locations. And he stressed that police officers were not lying in hiding waiting to catch speeding motorists.

“Grid references are published so people know where the speed cameras are going to be,” he said.

Councillor Black’s comments were supported by Patrick McAteer who commented: “We are asking for the goodwill of the public and at the same time we are getting feedback about the lack of use of discretion from officers coming in from the outside with no real knowledge of the area and with a gung-ho nature.

“This is happening in an over-zealous fashion which makes our job more difficult,” Mr. McAteer said.

Related topics: