Is the Law Like a Donkey?

The phrase "The law is an donkey" goes back to a character by the name of Mr. Bumble, who uttered those words in Charles Dickens' Oliver Twist. And since then they've probably been said millions of times by people around the world. And, how many times do we hear the expression `The punishment doesn't fit the crime`? It often seems that the guilty party is let off with minimal sentences disproportionate to the seriousness of the crime. Anyway, this takes me to a TV program recently which was all about police interceptors.

First of all, a bit about the cars the police in the UK use. In some British police forces, the cops use very fast cars, mainly for high speed chases. A car the police really like is the Subaru Impreza WRX. The WRX is perfect for Britain's narrow, twisty country roads. The bad guys don't easily shake off the WRX. It uses a 2.0-litre turbo engine and grippy four-wheel-drive system to get it to 60mph in around 5.0 seconds and a top speed nearing 150mph. Also, the Mitsubishi Evo VIII, one of the sharpest and deadliest driving tools you're likely to find the cops driving in the UK. With permanent four-wheel-drive and a 2.0-litre turbo engine, there are few cars that have the pace and the grip to outrun it. The 275bhp Mitsubishi will out handle any super car, thanks to a system called Super Active Yaw Control, which uses the latest Japanese electronics to keep the car stable, balanced and grippy through corners.

So, back to the `law is donkey` thing.

In one program, the police, using several of these very fast cars, had been called in to apprehend a car for failing to stop for a patrol car. After a car chase which lasted around 30 minutes or so, the car being chased - an Audi - was eventually stopped, with six police cars being involved in the pursuit. During the chase, late at night, the cars reached speeds of 115 miles per hour, which was clocked as they went through speed cameras in a village. Now, when the driver was dragged out of his car, he was asked why he failed to stop. His answer? "I did it for a laugh." Checks at the roadside showed he had a valid driving licence, his car was taxed properly, and he had the required motor insurance. He wasn`t in trouble for just committing any crimes. He ran, because he "did it for a laugh." The police had simply asked him to stop for a routine questioning.

So, he failed to stop at the request of the police, and he reached speeds of 115 mph in a 30 mph zone, both of which are of course a breaking of the law. And guess what eventually happened? Several months later the CPS (Crown Prosecution Service) decided not to take the matter any further. Why? Who knows. Lives were put at risk during the chase, several police cars were involved in the chase when they could have been doing something more worthwhile, but this idiot driver gets away with it. Yet, if a driver gets caught doing 40 mph in a 30 limit he gets a fine, and penalty points on his licence.