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court case

the journal of Michael Werneburg

twenty-seven years and one million words

On Monday I appeared in a court room for the first time, for the guilty plea of the driver who knocked me off my bike. The incident happened last April, and the driver had originally been charged with "careless driving" - a six demerit charge. He eventually plead guilty to a much lessor charge of "unsafe start" - only two demerits, a small fine, and the charge staying on the books for three years.

It was quite a learning experience. The prosecutor didn't speak to me at all, nor was I able to contact her in advance. The driver, though, was obviously in contact with the prosecutor, as they'd already arranged for a guilty plea for the lessor charge. The whole thing was over in ten minutes.

My take-away: don't expect much.

For instance, the driver seemed quite resentful about the whole thing, and ill-mannered about having to live with the charge. I would have thought he'd be quite happy to have the reduces so greatly reduced, especially since a) he did knock down a cyclist in a cycle lane and b) he did flee the scene of the accident (another seven demerits if he'd even been charged).