I Was Looking At A Pager

Question:

On x I was driving along an x on my way home and at the junction just before my home address was a Police traffic car sitting at the junction. I passed the police officers and then took the next left turning and pulled in outside my house.

As I opened the door to my vehicle I was surprised to see an officer standing there and he instantly said do you know why we stopped you I said no and then he said he and his colleague saw me texting on my mobile, I said sorry but you are mistaken because I haven’t used my mobile, he then asked have I been drinking?

I said no but he then asked me to take a breath test in his vehicle, one officer filled out the fixed penalty notice and the other officer carried out the breath test, the test showed 0 as I expected, I felt in a very threatening situation, the officer explained to me the options to take with the penalty notice and said to produce my licence at Flint police station.

I said I have the card part on me now and I can get the paper part as we were outside my house but he said no and to produce it, I then left the vehicle.

It then dawned on me what they had seen, as I am a retained Firefighter and an Auxiliary Coastguard officer I have to carry a pager for each service, they are not transmitters but just a pager to respond, I do remember checking one of these pagers to ensure it was switched on as sometimes the batteries fail without warning.

I can easy see how this could be confused with texting so I decided to be dealt with by the court and let them decide on whether I had committed an offence or not.

I produced my licence at my local station and told the officer at the desk what had happened and I wanted to be dealt with by the courts. I have today received my summons, the offence is I used a hand held mobile telephone but on reading the witness statement from the officer I couldn’t believe it, It reads –

DRIVER USING MOBILE PHONE WHILST DRIVING: PHONE IN RIGHT HAND TO RIGHT EAR, LIPS MOVING IN CONVERSATION. I INFORMED THE DRIVER OF THE OFFENCES AND CAUTIONED HIM. I TOLD HIM THE FACTS WOULD BE REPORTED. HE REPLIED ‘YEAH! IT JUST RANG. I ASKED HIM TO PRODUCE HIS DRIVING LICENCE. HE FAILED TO PRODUCE HIS: DRIVING LICENCE.-

Please give me your views on this? I have been driving for 23 years and have a clean licence, also I am right handed so if I pick up any phone either mobile or house phone its always in my left hand so I can write with my right hand. If I had been using the phone and admitted it to the officer like he said then why would I have suggested to go to court and increase my fine and costs.

Paula Says:

It sounds as though the officer has added all the standard phrases that they always out in when they are trying to prove use of a phone.

If you can produce phone records to show that you were not using your phone at the time of the alleged offence then you will have a good argument. You should also exhibit the pager at court to show the court that the officer made a mistake.

You have a defence to this matter and you should plead not guilty. You seem to know the risks regarding increased fines and court costs if you lose.